Voices
by Satanira
Summary: No one knows Duo Maxwell for what he really is... No one knows that he is a powerful demon that could destroy the Earth... No one... Until now. DISCONTINUED!
1. Chapter 1

Yes, another AU Gundam Wing fic by yours truly. This one's fairly dark, but I don't intend to put any suicide in it. Yet. I might later. You know how my stories are. They have friggin minds of their own...  
  
Also, I HAVE NOTHING AGAINST DUO. If I make him the victim all the time, it's because he makes a good fucking victim! If you flame me because of what happens to Duo, I'll put you in the story and let you get beat up instead!  
  
Okay, no I won't. In fact, flame me all you want. Because as the saying goes, 'That which does not kill me will be the basis for my revenge.'  
  
I also have nothing against Wufei, but... okay, I do have something against Wufei. A lot of somethings. Wufei fans have been warned.  
  
Also, I wrote the narrative Duo reads in the beginning of this chapter. Any and all poetry in this story is mine, unless otherwise stated. Please don't steal any of it.  
  
Last note, I swear. I have some characters from my friend Neil's comic, Niemagina. Their names are Seth, Chad, Lien, and Beck. Seth's the only one in this chapter. I have a picture of them, if you're one of those who need to be able to put a face to a character. Just say you'd like to see it in your review, and I'll send it to you.  
  
And that's everything. Let's get on with the story, shall we?  
  
"'Voices. I... hear voices. It's been so long since the last ones. So very, very long...their mere existence is balm to my aching soul...  
These voices are louder than the others... they are nearer, more sharply defined. There is a man... two women... and one so young that the voice could be male or female. It is difficult to tell from where I am buried, far beneath this dead planet's surface.  
'I think there's something here, Dad.' One of the female voices says, tinged with the gold of triumph and satisfaction.  
There is! I want to scream. I want to tell them I am here, that I am alive. But I cannot. The shields and spells... they are too strong for me. I cannot break them. I can only wait helplessly for them to find me.  
'Let me see.' The male voice says doubtfully. It's probably just a rock or something.  
'I'm bored.' The youngest voice complains. 'There ain't nuthin here. Let's just go already.'  
I become desperate at the thought of being left alone again. I do not want them to leave before they find me. I fight against my psychic prison, though I know it to be useless.  
Then, for the first time in eons, I hear the crumble of rock and feel the hot, blazing suns touch my flesh. I want to cry with relief. They have found me. They have found me at last...'"  
  
The tall, lanky boy sat down almost before he'd finished speaking, his face deep red at the attention of his classmates. As soon as he was seated, he grabbed the end of his long brown braid, fingering the rubber band nervously.  
"That was lovely, Mr. Maxwell." The teacher, a tall man with short ginger hair, said, nodding his approval. "That, my friends, was creative writing. Who else wants to read theirs?"  
Most of the students groaned and slouched in their seats; they knew that, like the boy, they had no say in whether they read theirs or not.  
"How about... Miss Noin? Yours was very nice."  
"Do I have to, Mr. Kushranada?" The dark haired girl near the back whined, slouching even further.  
"Come now, my dear! If Mr. Maxwell can stand up and read something for the class, so can you!"  
And it was true. Everyone agreed that Duo Maxwell was by far the shiest student in the school. He never did anything to attract attention unless a teacher made him, and even then it took some coaxing.  
"Oh, Fine." The girl sighed, pushing herself to her feet. "If I must." She cleared her throat self-consciously and began to read her own creative writing assignment. "'Not many people noticed Ann when she was there...'"  
  
"Bet you really enjoyed that, Maxwell." A voice behind the boy with the braid said, sounding mean and ruthless. A tanned hand slammed his locker closed, almost catching his fingers. "You must of really loved showing us lesser beings up with your superior skills, huh?" The voice's owner, a dark Chinese boy with slick black hair pulled into a short tail, sneered at the brunette, his slanted eyes narrowed dangerously.  
"N-no..." The boy stammered, looking down at the stack of books in his hands. "I...I wasn't try to... I mean...I..."  
"You tick me off, you know that?" The Chinese boy said, knocking the books to the ground. "You're a fucking wimp, Maxwell. The sight of you makes me retch."  
The brunette squatted to retrieve his things without a word, and the Chinese boy turned to go, kicking the brunette in the chest as he left. The brunette still said nothing, picking up his things and hurrying to his next class.  
  
A young girl with long blond pigtails watched the exchange from her locker down the hall. She sighed to herself, her eyes downcast, as she closed her locker, wondering why the other students had to be so mean to the quiet brunette.  
"Hey, Usagi." A kind voice near her said, and a hand landed on her shoulder. "You okay? You look down."  
"I'm fine, Quatre-chan." Usagi said, smiling reassuringly at the blond boy next to her. "I was just... thinking."  
"About?" Quatre pressed gently, his hand falling from her shoulder to her lower back.  
"People." She said simply, pausing before elaborating. "Do you know Duo Maxwell? The freshman boy with the really long braid?"  
"Who doesn't?" Quatre countered jokingly, smiling briefly before becoming serious again. "What about him?"  
"Why is everyone so mean to him, Quatre-chan?" She asked plaintively, resting her head on the taller boy's shoulder as they walked through the halls. "He's never done anything to anyone, but they all make fun of him and bully him. It makes no sense."  
"Maybe they're jealous." Quatre suggested, rubbing her back comfortingly.  
"Jealous?" She repeated, sounding puzzled.  
"Of his looks. His talent. His grades. There's a lot to be jealous of, if you're petty. All the single girls keep throwing themselves at him, he can get into any college he wants on scholarship without even trying, and he's a lyrical genius. You should have heard what he wrote for our creative writing class."  
"What was the assignment?" She asked, diverted from her train of thought.  
"Short narrative in the first person." He replied, smiling at her. "You of all people should know mine sucked, but his was literally a masterpiece..."  
  
Duo trudged down the nearly empty street in the waning light of dusk. He shifted his backpack to a more comfortable position as he reviewed the day in his head. The streetlights flickered on, and he quickened his pace, hoping to be home before full dark. He'd had a rough day, and he didn't want to add being jumped to his list of misfortunes. He'd much rather get home, do his homework, and take a long, hot bath before going to bed.  
Unfortunately, Fate seemed to have it in for him that day.  
Three shadows separated themselves from a nearby building and positioned themselves in front of him, behind him, and to the left. He stopped under a streetlight and the shadows stopped as well.  
"Well, well, well." The shadow in front of him said, stepping closer and becoming the Chinese boy from earlier. "If it isn't Mr. Maxwell, the world's biggest wimp. Where's your mommy? Shouldn't she be walking you home?"  
Duo winced at the mention of a mother. He didn't have parents; he couldn't even remember his parents, beyond a warm feeling of comfort, love, and belonging.  
The boy behind him pushed Duo hard, shoving him into the Chinese boy, who shoved him back with a look of mock-disgust.  
"Eww!" He said, faking wiping something off his shirt. "It touched me!"  
"Please..." Duo said quietly. "Please just leave me alone, okay?"  
"Aww, he even said please." The third shadow said mockingly. "Should we honor that request, Wufei?"  
The Chinese boy looked thoughtful for a moment, then shook his head. "No, we can't do that, I'm afraid." He said, smiling. "We owe Maxwell the beating he's had coming since day one."  
"True." A fist connected hard with the back of Duo's neck, knocking him to his knees and graying his vision.  
Wufei studied Duo for a moment, then kicked him in the chin, sending him flying into the second boy's legs.  
  
From there, things didn't get much better.  
  
A tall boy with medium brown hair swept over one eye hurried down the deserted sidewalk, his sneakers slapping the pavement with each step. His visible eye was closed, but he somehow dodged every obstacle in his path, including a downed garbage can and a low wall. He seemed to be heading somewhere specific, but didn't know the way. He slowed at every corner before turning and running down the next street.  
Another boy joined him, this one with spiky black hair and dark red eyes that seemed to glow from within.  
"Open your eyes before I push you into something." The dark-haired boy snapped, and the brunette obediently opened his emerald eyes.  
"Are you feeling this, Seth?" He asked.  
"Turn right." Seth said before the other boy could slow at the corner. "And if by 'this' you mean the demon somewhere in this city that's about to go killing-crazy, hell yeah, I'm feelin it. Why the hell else would I be runnin all over with your sorry Unabang ass?"  
"I'm hurt, Seth." The other boy said in a soft monotone. "Really hurt. Which way."  
"Left."  
  
"What d'ya think, Trowa?" Seth asked, staring down at the bloody mess of a body lying facedown near the entrance of the alley. "Should we kill him now and put him out of his misery? Or take him to a hospital? I vote we kill him."  
"We aren't going to kill him." Trowa said calmly, used to Seth's morbid brand of humor and way of thinking. "I'm going to take him to the hospital. You gonna come, or go home and kill Lien again?"  
"As much as I'd love to kill that annoying chatterbox, he and that girl went to some sort of convention for the week. Something about anime or something, I think."  
"Does that mean you're coming with?" Trowa asked, gently lifting the unconscious boy off the ground, trailing a long brown braid.  
"Why not? Let's go."  
  
The pretty young nurse at the reception desk in the emergency room simply stared at the trio walking into the room. That is, two of them were walking. The third one was being carried, and with good reason; he was out cold and covered in blood.  
"My goodness!" She exclaimed, standing and hurrying around the large desk. "What happened to him?"  
"He got his ass kicked, lady." The boy with dark, spiky hair dressed entirely in black snorted rudely. "Are you blind or something?"  
"Seth..." The other boy said warningly, glaring at his friend. "We don't know what happened to him. We found him like this."  
"Are you friends of his?" The nurse asked, waving them over to the desk and sitting behind it again.  
"We don't even know him." The polite boy with the brown unabang said quietly. "Well, I do." A doctor said, seemingly appearing behind the boys. "His name's Duo Maxwell. He's in here at least once a week with some new injury. But no one's ever brought him in before. He usually just crawls in the door under his own power. C'mon. Let's go patch him up."  
  
Duo woke slowly, aware that he was nestled in something soft and warm, kind of like a bed. Only he remembered Wufei and his buddies beating him up on the way home, and they certainly wouldn't have put him in a bed. So either he was hallucinating, or someone had found him. He really hoped it was the latter.  
"Oh, good, you're awake." A familiar voice said cheerfully. "You really got it this time, didn't you?"  
"Please not now, April." He begged, turning his huge violet eyes on the nurse. "I've got a really bad headache."  
"Oh, all right." April said, still smiling wickedly. "I've got something for that with me, and then you have a visitor."  
"A visitor?" Duo repeated, sitting himself up. Who would be visiting him?  
"Yes. One of the boys that brought you in last night. He hasn't left yet, and said he wouldn't until he was sure you were all right." April sighed wistfully and blushed, staring into space. "Oh, I wish I could meet a man like him! He's such a little cutie..."  
"April!" Duo moaned, burying his face in his hands. "Can you just send him in so I can thank him already?"  
"Oh! Of course, Duo dear." The nurse turned on her toes and skipped happily out of the room to fetch her 'little cutie.'  
"That woman..." Duo groaned, silently cursing whoever had let the girl through med school. She was entirely too braindead to be in a position to save someone's life.  
The door to his room opened, and Duo looked up to find himself staring at a young teen with a very unusual hairstyle. His bangs all fell over one eye in a clean, smooth, sweep, hiding half of his face. He was dressed in a dark green turtleneck, white jeans, and brown boots.  
"Good to see you're finally awake." The boy said quietly, closing the door. "I was worried."  
"Yeah... I'm glad I'm awake, too." Duo said, smiling nervously. Strangers frightened him; he was extremely uncomfortable being alone with this boy. "Umm... my name's Duo."  
"Trowa." Trowa said, still speaking just barely above a whisper. "What's your real name?"  
"R-real name?" Duo repeated, getting a very bad feeling about where this was going. "I... I guess I d-don't have one if... if it's n-not Duo."  
"Oh, yes you do." Trowa countered. "I'm not talking about your human name; I want to know what your demon name is."  
"M-my d-d-demon name?"  
"Yes. And don't try to tell me you're not a demon. You woke myself and a friend of mine up last night by coming to the brink of a killing frenzy." Trowa said calmly. "We would never have found you if you weren't a demon."  
"But..." Duo hesitated a moment, not sure of what to say. "a-are you a...a demon, too?"  
"Of course. That's the only way I would have been able to sense you. The name's Kerai. Now you gonna tell me yours, or am I gonna have to take it out of you?"  
"Sh-Shinagami..." He finally stammered.  
"You know, Shinagami, you came damned close to killing whoever kicked your ass last night. Why didn't you fight back?"  
"I... I might h-hurt them, though." He protested, wincing under the hard stare the other demon bent on him.  
"Looks like I'm gonna have to keep tabs on you, now that I've found you." Kerai sighed. "I'll see you later, Duo. Rest up."  
  
Duo trudged up the steps of the school building, feeling self- conscious in the bandages still adorning his wrist, arm, and neck. He could feel the eyes of his fellow students on his back as he made his way to his locker. He hated the way everyone was looking at him, like they'd like to either tear him to pieces slowly or just outright kill him. It made him nervous when conversations stopped until he'd walked past the speakers. He regretted his decision to attend school, but it was too late to back out now. He was no coward. He wouldn't run away at the first little snag. He got his books and went to his homeroom, ignoring the looks people were throwing him, his mind on what Trowa had told him yesterday. Had he really almost killed Wufei? Was he really that dangerous? Could he really do that much damage, even trapped in the form of a human? "Hey, did you hear we're getting a new student?" Someone behind him demanded of a friend.  
  
"It was pathetic, man." Wufei said. "The bitch didn't squeal once."  
"Yeah." One of his buddies said. "Think he was too scared? Or just trying to be tough?"  
"Maybe his voice box is defective." A third suggested. "Maxwell sure can whimper, though."  
That was enough. Trowa now knew who was responsible for Duo's condition. If he was going to protect the gentle demon, he had to establish his place in this school. Now was as good a time as any, he decided, standing. He walked over to the little group and tapped the infamous Wufei on the shoulder.  
"What?" Wufei snapped, whipping around to glare at Trowa. "In case you couldn't tell, newbie, I'm talking here. Go away."  
"Not until you answer a question of mine." Trowa said quietly, clenching his fists against the urge to incinerate the arrogant Chinese boy.  
"And what might that be?"  
"This Maxwell I overheard you talking about. Would he happen to be Duo Maxwell?"  
"How'd you guess?" Wufei asked, smiling viciously. The smile disappeared when Trowa grabbed him by the neck and slammed him into the wall with enough force to crack it.  
"Making you the reason he almost died night before last." Trowa said, his voice still deathly calm. "Am I right?"  
"S-so what if I am?" Wufei asked, keeping up his tough act as long as his feet were on the ground. When they left it, however, he started to panic just a little.  
"I don't appreciate people attacking other people just because they're weaker, bastard." Trowa said, still calm as when he'd walked into the room. "I also don't appreciate being talked down to. Am I understood?"  
Due to a severe lack of air, all Wufei could do was nod.  
"Mr. Barton!" The teacher exclaimed, entering the classroom then. "Put Mr. Chang down this instant!"  
Trowa let Wufei go, and he fell to the floor, gasping for air. "Keep this little talk in mind next time you want to use Duo for a punching bag." He warned before turning and walking calmly back to his seat.  
  
"Are you serious?!" A girl squealed from below Duo's perch hidden in a large oak tree.  
"Dead serious!" Her friend said as the two stopped in the shade to gossip. "He picked him up with one hand like it was nothing!"  
"And this is because Wufei put Maxwell in the hospital two days ago?" The first girl pressed.  
"Yes! They could be related! Or..." She paused dramatically until the suspense was too much for the other girl.  
"Or what?" She demanded.  
"Or maybe he's Maxwell's boyfriend who transferred here to protect him!"  
Duo almost fell out of the tree. Him? With a boyfriend? And only one person had transferred to the school recently... Him with Trowa for a boyfriend? Oh, gods was that a scary thought.  
  
And thus ends chapter one of Voices. It's called Voices for a reason. You'll find it out later. Review, people, or I shall never finish this story! 


	2. Chapter 2

Hi, everyone. Satanira here. I swore I wouldn't work on this story at all until someone reviewed from chapter one, but I haven't even posted it yet, and I'm already starting chapter two. Am I pathetic or what?  
  
Also, I warned the Wufei lovers. If this story offends your delicate Wuffle-centered sensibilities, too bad! I need a villain, and Wufei and I do not get along! I hate Wuffles!  
  
Okay, I don't really hate him. But ever since that incident with that can of soda and my CD player, let's just say it's been safest for him to stay away from me. ;  
  
To Comechatcha – Yay! [glomps] You're the very first reviewer for this story! Thank you so much! Now I know someone's actually ready this! Yay! [gives Trowa and Duo plushies] Here's your prize! Virtual plushies!  
  
The entire school was talking about the incident by the end of the day; the boys thought it was cool how Trowa had attacked Wufei like he was nothing, and the girls all thought it was terribly romantic. They were convinced that Trowa had followed Duo from his last school to protect him because the two were in love. No one would leave them alone.  
Frankly, it was getting on Trowa's nerves.  
He'd hacked the system and given himself a schedule identical to Duo's with the exception of elective- no way was he taking Art Foundations- so he could keep the younger demon under his watchful eye all the time; he wasn't sure if that had been a good idea or not. Duo seemed to share at least one class with every female in the building, but one glare from Trowa made them melt away like ice under a fireball.  
In fact, he'd just warded off a particularly dimwitted brunette named Relena, who withered under his gaze and slunk back to her seat, pouting.  
"Did you see that?" The boy behind Trowa whispered to someone else. "He shut Relena Peacecraft up by looking at her!"  
"I wonder if he'll teach us his secret." His friend answered. Trowa could practically hear the grin in his voice.  
"C'mon, guys." The boy next to Trowa, a soft-spoken blond with huge aqua-blue eyes, cut in. "She's not all that bad."  
"Quatre." The boy behind Trowa said seriously. "You think Mamoru's 'not all that bad.' She's nice to you because she's scared of your girlfriend. We aren't saints, buddy; we can't stand the bitch."  
Trowa simply stared ahead, one eye on Duo at all times. The way the other brunette acted around humans was obviously why he'd gotten beat up; he was polite to everyone, stammered all the time, and BLUSHED for crying out loud!  
The teacher walked in to the room a split second after the bell rang, and everyone scrambled for their seats.  
"Okay, where's the new kid?" The teacher asked, scanning the room until he found Trowa. "Ah, there you are, Mr. Barton! Tell me, what kind of literature do you write most?"  
"Poetry." Trowa said. "Blank verse, mostly."  
"What a coincidence!" The teacher said cheerfully. "We're starting our poetry unit today! I'm Mr. Kushranada, also known as the Slacker's Worst Nightmare. Everyone does their best in this class, and everyone reads something at least once a week, including Mr. Maxwell. Speaking of which, Mr. Maxwell, what the hell happened to your hand?"  
"A... a l-lot of stuff...." Duo stammered, blushing furiously as he stared very hard at his desk. "I-it's okay, sir."  
"Okay, enough of that!" Mr. Kushranada said, clapping his hands. "Who can tell me what an alliteration is?"  
  
Duo hesitated after the bell rang, not sure if he should wait for Trowa or not. He glanced back at the tall unabang, who was shoving his books into his bag with incredible speed, probably hoping to avoid Makoto, the class boy-chaser. He finished packing and started towards the door, but stopped at Duo's desk. The remaining students stared as he bent over to say something to the other brunette.  
"Wait for me at your locker." He said. "I'm walking you home today."  
Duo nodded mutely, flashing a quick smile at Trowa before running out of the classroom, past a group of girls already squealing 'He smiled! Maxwell smiled!' and other such strange girlish nonsense.  
  
Duo stood nervously in the rapidly emptying hallway, glancing around for Trowa. Somehow, he couldn't bring himself to disobey the other demon and go home alone, even if it meant standing in the hall with the other students staring at him as they passed, whispering to each other.  
He'd never really cared what people said about him before; he'd just kind of brushed it off as part of being him. But now they were talking about Trowa, too, and he felt weird about that, since it was basically all his fault.  
"Hey, Duo." Trowa said, suddenly next to him.  
"Yipe!" Duo yiped, jumping about a foot and doing a quarter turn at the same time.  
"Jumpy, much?" Trowa asked, lifting his visible eyebrow. "Let's go, my braided bundle of nerves." He sighed, ruffling Duo's hair before pushing him gently towards the door.  
  
"Umm...Trowa?" Duo said quietly, running to keep up with the taller boy. "I... I l-live that way."  
"I know." Trowa said, glancing over his shoulder. "We're not going to your place. There's someone I want you to meet."  
"W-who?" Duo asked uncertainly, not really feeling up to yet another stranger in his life.  
"You'll see." Trowa said, smiling a mysterious little smile as he turned the corner to his apartment building.  
The two went into the building and climbed the stairs to the third floor, stopping in front of apartment 307. The door flung itself inward before Trowa had even gotten his key out, and they were both attacked by a hyperactive blond dressed entirely in red.  
"Whee! Tro-chan! You're back!" The blond yelled, kissing Trowa and turning to do the same to Duo, who cringed slightly. "Oh!" she said, letting him go with an embarrassed giggle. "Gomen nasai! I thought you were Seth-sama!"  
"Beck, do you have a serious death wish or something?" Trowa asked, wrapping his arms around her shoulders briefly and planting a kiss on her forehead. "You know Seth will kill you if you attack him like that."  
"Nu-uh!" Beck said, shaking her head vigorously. "He wouldn't do that! I'm too cute and it would upset Lien lots! And speaking of Lien, look what he got me at the con we went to!" She turned a quick circle and posed provocatively right in the walkway, showing off the blood red miniskirt wrapped around her hips and matching tubetop.  
"It's very nice, Beck." Trowa said, shooing her inside. "What are you doing here?" He asked, pulling Duo inside.  
"Lien burned my house down again, so I need a place to stay, and you're safe to stay with because you won't rip up my manga like Seth will, or say I can't watch my anime like Seth will, and you'll let me use your computer all the time, like Chad won't, and hi! I'm insane, but you can call me Beck! Are you a friend of Trowa's? Do you go to his new school? You're not his boyfriend, are you? I'm pretty sure he doesn't have a boyfriend, right Trowa? Or a girlfriend for that matter. You're not interested in humans, so you're really safe!"  
"Beck!" Trowa yelled, cutting off the blond's flow of questions. "Please calm down. You're going to scare Duo, if you haven't already. How did you get in?"  
"You left your bedroom window unlocked." She said, grinning. "I was going to break it open with my brand new Moon Scepter, but then I saw it was unlocked, so I climbed in and yelled at Tasuki for sleeping in the middle of the day and not answering the door when I knocked and knocked and knocked and making me climb the side of the building with both my bags in a miniskirt and heels because he sleeps too much and-"  
"That's enough." Trowa said without shouting. "Is Tasuki still here, or did you chase him away again?"  
"He went right back to sleep! I wanted him to take me to the pool, but he said he didn't have to since I yelled at him and I got a brand new bathing suit I was gonna wear and everything, but nooo, Tasuki needs his twenty-three hours of sleep a day and he wouldn't wake up again, even when I jumped up and down on his bed and I might have accidentally knocked his lamp over and maybe broke it, but... okay, I hit him on the head with it, and he made a funny noise, but he still didn't wake up! I wanna go to the pool!"  
"I'll take you as soon as we're sure Tasuki's still alive, okay?" Trowa promised, heading for the back of the house. "But you have to sit still and speak very slowly to Duo, okay?"  
"Okay!" She said cheerfully, plopping down on the couch. "You must be Duo." She said at half what appeared to be her usual speed, smiling pleasantly.  
"Y-yeah..." Duo said, sitting down opposite her.  
"You're shy, aren't you? It's okay. Seth was shy once, too. But Trowa's good at fixing that. Have you met Seth? If not, you probably don't want to." She paused for a moment, cocking her head to the side and studying him. "What kind of demon are you?"  
"W-what?!"  
"I've got a little demon blood myself, but I can't do much more than sense other demons and use water to scry. Passive abilities, and unreliable at best." She smiled again. "I could probably scry to figure out what kind of demon you are, if you don't know."  
"You can?" Duo asked, interested in spite of his shyness.  
"Yup. Can I try? It's impolite to scry about someone without permission unless you absolutely have to."  
"S-sure."  
"I'll be right back!" She exclaimed, jumping up and running out of the room, only to return with a shiny black bowl and a bottle of water.  
  
She put the bowl down on the coffee table and filled it halfway with the water bottle. When the water calmed completely, she placed her hands on either side of the bowl and closed her eyes. Then she began to glow, her hair floating slightly. The water in the bowl began glowing as well, then suddenly flared blinding red, sending a blast of heat into Duo's face.  
  
Beck yelped and jumped away from the table, staring in mild shock at her bowl.  
  
"That...was NOT supposed to happen." She said finally, picking the bowl up and dumping its contents into a handy potted plant. "You're one strong demon, my friend. Your natural shields are stronger than the ones Trowa put on me to keep full demons from controlling me. You're a death demon, in case you were wondering."  
  
"A d-death demon?"  
  
"You don't cause death or anything, don't worry. Your strength lies in working with the spirits of the deceased. Death demons usually have or develop close relationships with Old or Dark gods, and can form powerful alliances with just about any demon type, and many other creatures, such as nymphs, fairies, or even pixies. And let me tell you, pixies as a rule hate demons. Death has a bad reputation, but it's one of the most useful types."  
  
"Beck, what're ya tellin th' poor kid?" A strange voice demanded from behind Duo, causing him to jump.  
  
"The truth, Tasuki." Beck said, sticking her tongue out at the speaker. "Which is more than you would do, you mountain bandit!"  
  
"'S what I ahm." Tasuki said, jumping over the couch. He crossed the living room quickly and kissed Beck on the cheek before running into the kitchen with a smug grin.  
  
"Dammit, Tasuki, how many times do I have to tell you not to kiss me?!" She demanded angrily, scrubbing her cheek with the heel of one hand.  
  
"Payback's a bitch, ain't she?" Tasuki said, laughing. "Get yer suit. I'll take ya ta th' damned pool. But I ain't swimming."  
  
"You are so lucky we're not at my house, or you'd be dead." Beck threatened darkly, stalking into the back of the apartment to change.  
  
"Did you two enjoy your talk?" Trowa asked, smiling at the way Duo and Beck had hit it off.  
"Sh-she's real nice." Duo said, returning Trowa's smile. "She s- says she's a w-water demon."  
"She's got just enough blood to be an active demon." Trowa said. "She sticks to the passive talents, and actually makes money off that scrying abilities of hers. I take it you found out what kind of demon you are?"  
"Y-yeah..." Duo said, blushing.  
"We have got to do something about this habit you have of blushing for no good reason." Trowa said, shaking his head. "And that infuriating habit of apologizing for everything."  
"Sorry." Duo said, then flushed even redder.  
"That's what I'm talking about. I'm also going to teach you hand-to- hand combat so you can walk home alone without almost getting killed again. How often does that happen, anyway?"  
"N-not often." Duo said, slouching slightly. "J-just every now an- nd then..."  
"Which is too often." Trowa said, sighing. "You, my friend, are too damned nice. If someone's hurting you, fight back. That's what your powers are for."  
"B-but I... I can't." Duo protested, staring at the ground.  
"Why not?" Trowa asked. "You damned near lost it a two days ago and killed them anyway!"  
"I... I fought back o-once..." Duo said quietly. "E-even I d-didn't r- recogni-ize their b-bodies..."  
  
And that's chapter two. A little, short, I know. But what do you care? Chances are, only three people are reading this, and no one's gonna review unless they feel sorry for me... [sniffsniff]  
  
Review? Pretty, pretty please? 


	3. Chapter3

Dun-dun-dun! Chapter three! Fear the cheesy fanfares! Bwahahahaha!  
  
But seriously. Okay, not seriously. I can't be serious. I've tried, but it never seems to work. I wonder why? [thinks hard] Ow. Dislocated brain. Ow. Ow.  
  
And I DO have something against Relena. I am the president of the Relena- Hater's Club. I even made a cool badge with the URL of a great site on it for the members. Who wants to join?  
  
To Patricia16- Are you sure you're not just feeling sorry for me? Cause if you are, it's making me feel better anyway. Heehee... Anyway, I'm updating as fast I can, what with all the other stuff I'm working on, like my other stories [throws a fit because she's stuck on The Ties That Bind] and my websites.  
  
To Comechatcha- What explains thing?  
  
To Dreamwinds- Lol. I'm glad you like it. I'm one of three or four people who know some of these characters, so it's okay.  
  
To ZmajGoddess- No, it wasn't an accident. Not unless he was trying to break the table and hit my CD player on accident. Glass bottles full of soda simply do not break on electronics on their own, my friend. And Trowa's not a big bad demon thingy; he's actually really nice, he just doesn't like bullies. Duo's not a wimp. He has his reasons, and he'll get better later on. The whole point of this story is Duo getting better at being a demon.  
  
To Mystery-child-001- I'm glad you like it. I tried to make Duo as cute and innocent as possible, considering he's a powerful demon and has killed people. And does that 'so far' an implication that it won't be as good later on? You're hurting my feelings over here, people.  
  
Okay, I think that's everyone. Let's get on with the story.  
  
"Get out of my kitchen, you second-rate thief!" Trowa winced at the heavy sound of metal hitting metal resounded through the small apartment.  
"I r'sent that, wench! Ow!" Tasuki and Beck were definitely fighting again. "Tro," Tasuki said, wandering into the living room with one hand rubbing the side of his face, "ya gotta git ridda tha' crazy wench."  
"She wouldn't hit you half as often if you'd stop calling her 'wench' and kissing her every time you get the chance." Trowa advised, turning the page of the old, tattered book in his lap.  
"I was here firs." Tasuki said sullenly, stomping back into his bedroom. "Call me when th grub's done." He added before closing his door.  
Beck walked into the living room, her hair falling into her eyes, her apron falling off one shoulder, and a dripping ladle held in her hand like weapon. "I! Hate! Him!" She screamed, throwing the ladle at Tasuki's door hard enough to crack the wood. "You hear me, you bastard?! I hate you!" With that, she stomped back into the kitchen.  
Trowa sat blinking on the sofa for about a half a minute before he closed his book, picked up the phone, and dialed Duo's number.  
"Hey, Duo?" He said when his fellow demon answered. "I think I'm going to spend the night at your place tonight, okay? Beck and Tasuki are at it again, only more so this time. Uh-huh. Okay. Yeah, don't worry about it. Okay, see you later."  
One hastily-packed bag and a quick note on the TV later, Trowa slipped silently out of his apartment and started across the dark city.  
  
"I really regret letting her stay with us until her house is ready again." Trowa said with a sigh, rummaging through Duo's freezer. "Do you have anything in here besides frozen dinners and ice cream?"  
"Not really." Duo said, blushing slightly. "I... like ice cream a lot. What happened to B-beck's house, anyway?"  
Trowa laughed, finally choosing a small carton of mint-chocolate-chip and grabbing a spoon. "A friend of hers by the name of Lien tried baking a cake as a surprise for her and wound up burning the place down instead." He plopped down on the couch and started eating his for once unhealthy dinner. "This is about the third or fourth time he's done this, too."  
"The thought's what counts, though.." Duo pointed out, pausing in the systematic inhalation of a frozen TV dinner. "He was trying to be nice."  
"Yes, but he has the attention span of a knat." Trowa said. "He was trying very hard to concentrate on the cake, but then he found out she had an anime he'd never seen and he sat down to watch it. The kitchen was totally up in flames before he remembered he should check on his food."  
"That was... absentminded of him." Duo said, blinking.  
"That's the understatement of the week."  
  
"They came to school together?!" A voice shrieked from ten or so feet below Duo, almost startling him off his narrow perch.  
"I know!" Another girl exclaimed. "They might as well have been holding hands! I've never seen Maxwell so red!"  
Duo groaned under his breath. He and Trowa seemed to be the only thing the girls at school gossiped about anymore, save for each other. It was fast approaching the point of being irritating; he hated people talking about him behind his back, especially when it was stuff like this.  
"Are you sure you're not just being romantic about it, Catherine?" The shrieker asked dubiously. "Maxwell's always red as a beet. Maybe Trowa's just trying to be friendly, like Quatre and that Japanese girl of his."  
"I'm telling you, Relena, there is something going on with those two!" Catherine asserted. "It's obvious if you know what to look for."  
"Oh, and you do?" Relena asked archly.  
"As a matter of fact, I do. I was adopted by a gay couple, remember?" Catherine reminded the other girl with a tone of smug superiority. "I definitely know what I'm talking about; Trowa and Maxwell are as gay as they come, and smitten with each other to boot."  
  
Trowa buried his face in his hands and counted slowly backwards from ten. When he reached zero, he looked Relena Peacecraft right in the eye and kept a tight rein on his temper.  
"Once more, Miss Peacecraft," he said as calmly as he could, "and try not to shriek this time."  
"I asked you if you were Duo Maxwell's boyfriend." The brunette dunce repeated slowly, as if talking to an idiot.  
"Wherever did you get such a ridiculous idea?" Trowa demanded, blinking at her. "I am most assuredly not Duo's boyfriend. Forgive me for saying so, but you as a romantic interest for either of us is a more plausible notion."  
"But you came to school with him this morning!" She protested, a stubborn mask of denial covering her features. "You talk to him all the time, and you both disappear every day at lunch!"  
"I'm his only friend in this hellhole." Trowa said flatly, his voice dropping to a dangerously low tone. "If I spend the night at his house, that does not mean he is my boyfriend. If I'm the only person he feels it safe to talk to, that is not my fault, nor is it his. Do you have anything else you'd like to say, or are you going to leave me alone now?"  
Relena looked about to respond waspishly, but thought better of it, turning instead and flouncing to her seat.  
"Dude." The boy behind Trowa, a tall boy with dark, messy hair named Gawl said, clapping Trowa on the shoulder. "You are my hero. If you want her dead, I'll gladly kill her for free."  
Kyoji, the boy next to Gawl, kicked his friend in the shin, frowning. "It's unseemly to speak that way, Gawl." He said, as serious as he always was. "No matter how you feel about her, she is still a lady and a human being."  
"I beg to differ." Gawl said. "I think she's an alien. A male alien. She has absolutely no feminine grace, Kyoji. Just looking at her gives me the creeps."  
"Don't let Ryo hear you say that." Kyoji unbent enough to smile. "He's fallen for her, you know."  
Gawl shuddered, theatrically, making a face. "That's cruel, Kyoji. Don't tell me stuff like that. You know I'm sensitive."  
"As a brick wall." Trowa muttered, hiding a smile of his own.  
"Why's everybody ganging up on me?" Gawl asked the ceiling, pouting. "You'd better not fall on me, either. People teasing me is bad enough. I don't need buildings joining in, too."  
"Talking to the ceiling again, Gawl?" Miss Mizuno, the slim, pretty Biology teacher, smiled herself as Gawl fell out of his chair trying to sit up straight.  
"This ain't fair." He complained, climbing back into his seat. "I wanna go home."  
"Nothing doing, Gawl." Miss Mizuno said. "We have a test today, and you don't want to have to take the make-up. That one's twice as hard."  
  
"Something's seriously wrong here." Trowa said, staring at the scene before him.  
"How so?" Beck asked, flipping the page of her manga.  
"Well, for starters, you're using Tasuki as a backrest." Trowa noted, tossing his overnight bag in the corner. "Tasuki isn't complaining about it or kissing the top of your head. I could swear that's anime on the TV screen. None of the furniture is broken. The building is still standing."  
"An?" Tasuki asked, watching the TV with mild interest.  
"And which one of you is a robot made by the other to hide the fact that you've been brutally murdered in your sleep?"  
"That would be him." Beck said, absently shifting position. "Tasuki's not smart enough to build a robot. Come to think of it, neither am I. We just reached an agreement while you were gone, Trowa."  
"And what agreement is that?" Trowa sat down on the chair, as his roommates were taking up the whole couch.  
"He stops torturing me, I stop hitting him." Beck explained calmly. "And my tummy hurts, so I'm not up for any fighting." She added.  
"Oh. That's good to know. I'm going to bed, you two. I've had a very tiring day." Trowa stood up and wandering back to his bedroom, muttering under his breath about brainwashing.  
  
Duo sat on his couch, idly flipping through the channels. Not that there wasn't anything good on; he'd seen five things he would've been glad to watch at any other time, if he hadn't been so distracted.  
His mind was involved in a long, complicated argument with itself at the moment, discussing something Trowa had said that morning. So while his brain yelled out the pros and cons of getting training, his hand clicked away.  
Part of his thought center freed itself long enough to tell his hand to turn off the TV and turn on the CD player. Maybe background music would help resolve his whole internal struggle thing.  
He thought back over the times he'd lost control in the past while 'This Isn't What We Meant' pounded through his small apartment. There was the time he'd burned down his school, the time he'd accidentally blown up a few empty cars, the earthquake he'd caused, and those boys he'd killed.  
"Maybe training wouldn't be such a bad thing." He said out loud, ruthlessly suppressing the memory of the five twisted, bloody corpses he'd left in that back alley. "If I don't learn to control my powers, I could kill someone else." The part of his mind that always argued for the sake of argument shut its yap and left him alone. Training it was.  
"I hate this song." He said suddenly, throwing a rubber ball at the power button on his stereo. "Why do I even have that CD?" Halfway through the chorus, the song cut off, and the brunette was able to nap in relative peace.  
  
"It's not working, Trowa." Duo said for what seemed like the hundredth time in the past hour, dropping his hands in defeat and plopping down on the ground.  
"Defeatist." Trowa accused good-naturedly, sitting down in front of Duo. "It's not working because you don't believe it'll work, and that doubt is getting in the way of your power."  
"Oh, is that all?" Duo asked sarcastically. "Well, how do you know I can do this in the first place? It's way hard!"  
"Did you just talk back to me?" Trowa demanded incredulously. "Duo, does this mean you're finally getting a backbone?"  
"Shut up." Duo muttered, blushing a little. "I'm tired and sore, my head hurts, and I still can't control the littlest bit of energy in my body. I'm irritable."  
Trowa couldn't help it; he burst out laughing, burying his face in his hands.  
  
When Trowa made it back to his apartment later that night, the relationship between his roommates had gotten worse. Not only were they both sitting on the couch and not fighting, but the were both fast asleep, Beck curled up in Tasuki's lap with her arms wrapped around his neck.  
He stared at the two for about a minute, then shook his head and started for his room. "I give up." He muttered, quietly closing the door. "I'm never going to understand those two."  
He put his things away and stripped off his shirt, then decided he'd better turn off the TV and light, at least. He slipped out into the living room again and turned off all electronics, pausing to smile at the fact that Tasuki's hand had found its way to Beck's thigh. He was so in for a beating when she woke up.  
  
Yes, it's short. I know this, because I wrote it. Now review, and chapter four might be longer. 


	4. Chapter 4

To Patricia16- That doesn't count, dammit! If you don't leave an individual review next time, I won't respond!

To Mystery-child-001- I know. I just wanted to make you feel bad. big goofy smile It's okay! I'm working on it as much as I can, but my muse ran away so I can't tell how much or little I'll work on any of my stories until he is returned to me... Hey, why don't you head up a hunt for Chibi Hiroyuki so my writing will go faster! I'll give Tasuki and Beck plushies to whoever finds him for me! Speaking of those two, there's no way in hell I'll let them ruin Trowa's nice apartment, but other assorted freestanding structures may fall victim to the destructive duo. evil grin

To- ZmajGoddess- I'm glad he's gonna get better, too. I hate writing shy people. OOC sucks sometimes. Do you think Seth should kill Relena and not get in trouble? I'd really like for him to kill her...

To Concrete Tenshi- As of right now, Duo is... nothing. Asexual. Not interested. Later... Your guess is as good as mine. Usagi will play a very important role later on, so she's gonna meet everyone. Yes, she and Quatre are a couple. And a very cute one at that! glomps Usa and Q-chan No, you're not being nosy. I'm writing as fast as I can, but my muse ran away, so... sniffsniff What's to say something horrible isn't going to happen anyway? Tasuki is from Fushigi Yuugi, and Seth and Beck are from a comic by a friend of mine. My reply is now easily as long as your review, so I'm going to actually work on the story now. Ja ne!

Trowa sighed to himself, once again questioning the merits of going to school. He already knew everything he needed to know, the students were annoying, the teachers tried his patience on an hourly basis, and there were girls. Lots and lots of girls, a good deal of whom were going after him like he was the last man on earth. Some boys did that, too, come to think of it.He just did not understand humans.

Take right now, for example; gym class. Once a day, the whole class dressed out, ran in circles, and tried their damnedest to kill each other without seeming to. Football, baseball, basketball, even track were simply legalized ways to hurt other people.

"Yo, Barton! Heads up, dude!" His tennis partner shouted, driving the ball straight at him. Trowa batted it back across the net without even looking at it, which stopped the games on either side long enough for both to loose their balls and the teacher to ask what the hell they were all staring at. Trowa smiled to himself, wondering what their reactions would be if they ever saw him and Beck going at it seriously.

"I. Give. Up!" Beck said with a firm note of finality in her voice, slamming the large book in front of her shut.

"Give up on what?" Duo asked curiously, peeking around the kitchen doorway before slipping all the way in.

"This stupid book!" She exclaimed with an extravagant gesture at aforementioned leatherbound volume as if that simple sentence was explanation enough.

"What book is that?" He asked, taking advantage of her distraction to swipe a warm cookie off the plate next to the book.

"Oh, that's right, you don't know about the prophecy!" [1] Her eyes seemed to light up, as if he'd opened the door to a potentially mind-bending subject. "It's real complicated and very vague, but that's okay because Trowa and I are real good at figuring this stuff out, even if a few of the titles are a little beyond us right now, like the Dark One, the Vessel, and the Bride. We can't for the life of us figure out who they are. We're pretty sure that Trowa's the Mentor, although a few things don't really fit, because the Mentor is supposed to teach the Shining One, whoever that is, and be the Shining One's lover, but I doubt Trowa will ever be anyone's lover. It's like he's made of ice or something, I swear! But anyway, I give up on this stupid thing because it keeps referring to the Fanged God and the Mystic, neither of whom are supposed to exist at the time they're mentioned, by which I mean that it comes right out and says, and I quote, 'and the Fanged God, who will come to be in sevenweek's time, shall go e'en to the Tower of Angels, and there shall he encounter the Sprite and the Learned One that he has known before, who shall be of utmost importance to the Shining One's quest' and end quote! Does that make any sense? How can someone who doesn't exist go find an old friend at this Tower of Angels place? And what the hell is a Tower of Angels? It makes absolutely no sense! And did the Fanged God know both the Sprite and the Learned One already, or just the Learned One? I give up, already! Someone else can figure it out! Take that!" Beck then proceeded to punch the cover of the book with all her considerable strength.

"Wha's wit th' yellin'?" Tasuki asked around a yawn, wandering into the kitchen. "'Ey, Shrimpy." He said in greeting to Duo, who was used enough to the redhead's odd fondness for nicknames not to even blush very much.

"It's the stupid prophecy again!" Beck pouted, crossing her arms and glaring at the book. "I can't make any sense of it! It keeps talking about the Fanged God and the Mystic and things they're supposed to do before they're even born!"

"Eh... tha's kinda c'nfusin." Tasuki agreed, picking the book up and opening it to a large silver bookmark. He ran his finger down the page, muttering to himself. "Ye're right." He finally agreed, closing it again. "'S all gibb'rish." He absently handed the heavy book to Duo, who took it and slipped out into the living room. This prophecy thing intrigued the brunette.

"Don't try to force it, Duo." Trowa said softly, his words barely touching the edges of Duo's light trance. "Just let the energy flow through you; you're the vessel right now, not the controller. Let it use you as a bridge between the ley line and me."

Duo did his best to obey, but as soon as the warm tingling that meant he was open to the wild energy started along his arms and back, he involuntarily slammed down on the flow, cutting it off. The sudden shock of doing so shook him back to awareness, and he opened his eyes to find himself still standing in the middle of Trowa's bedroom, touching palms with the taller boy, who looked slightly disappointed.

"Sorry." Duo said with a defeated sigh. "I did it again."

"Don't worry." Trowa said, smiling. "It's perfectly normal for someone with your mistrust in outside forces to lock up as soon as you feel what your subconscious sees as an invasion. You're not choosing to do it; it's just happening."

"You know, I find that strangely comforting." Duo commented, plopping down on the edge of the bed. "Considering you just told me I can't control these stupid powers because I can't control my own reactions."

"If you choose to see it that way." Trowa agreed, seating his cute little rear on his desk. "Then again, that kind of thinking is exactly what's blocking you."

"If you say so..." Duo said, not really sure of what his friend had just said. "You're the magic expert."

"Hey, Tasuki?" Trowa called, knocking on the redhead's bedroom door. "Have you seen Beck?"

"No!" Tasuki replied, and something crashed to the floor. "Th' wench prob'ly went ta th' pool or somethin!"

"With who?" Trowa demanded.

"Seth? I dunno!"

Trowa shook his head and wandered off in search of a certain hyperactive blond otaku.

"YOU CAN'T KILL HIM, YOU LOVE HIM!!" Shook the foundations of the apartment building, and the tenants winced as one. Tasuki burrowed further under his comforter, and Trowa decided he'd better see what the hell was going on before Beck really lost it.

He peeked into the living room and saw Beck in the middle of the floor on her stomach, her eyes riveted to the flickering TV screen. Her cheeks streamed tears, and her hands were clamped around her upper arms so tight that Trowa was sure he saw blood leaking down her fingers. [2]

On second thought, Trowa decided he would be much better off if he remained oblivious to whatever had happened in whatever anime Beck had picked up that afternoon and slipped back down the hall to his room.

"Goddammit, Tasuki, get out of my kitchen!" Beck yelled.

"I'm getting a sense of déjà vu here." Trowa muttered, not looking up from his copy of the prophecy. "I could swear I've heard this before."

"I guess the truce is over." Duo said, shrugging. "It lasted a lot longer than I expected it to, that's for sure."

"Tell me about." Trowa snorted, closing the heavy book. "What say we spend the night at your place again? I kind of don't want to be around when they really start fighting."

"I give up!" Duo said, throwing his hands up in defeat. "I can't do this, Trowa. We might as well not waste any more of your time."

"Ah, you'll get it eventually." Trowa reassured him, smiling. "It took me a while to nail down the basics, too."

"Forget it." Duo moaned, sprawling backwards over Trowa's bed. "I am and always will be magically inept, no matter what you guys think."

"You were socially inept not that long ago, too." Trowa reminded him, sitting on the bed and toying with the end of Duo's braid. "Now you can actually speak to other people without turning into a tomato."

"Shush, you." Duo commanded sourly, sitting up and scowling for all he was worth.

"You're cute when you do that." Trowa commented, still smiling.

"Oh, so I'm only cute when I scowl?" Duo countered, striving to look injured.

"No." Trowa said, gently placing the tail of Duo's braid on the blanket before smiling impishly at his friend. "You're cute when you do that, too."

The next thing either boy knew, they were kissing, Trowa pressing the smaller brunette against the wall. Something unspoken but mutually understood passed between them as Trowa slowly drew back, something too important for mere words.

"Are you sure about this?" Trowa asked breathlessly, staring deep into Duo's huge violet eyes.

"Positive." Duo replied, kissing Trowa again.

"Only fools are positive." Trowa reminded him when they reluctantly broke apart after what could have been an hour for all they knew.

"Then I guess I'm a fool." Duo said with a wicked smile of his own, falling back onto the blankets and bringing Trowa with him. The two kissed again, and the world ceased to exist in their minds.

But the two had forgotten someone in their newfound passion; a someone who didn't mind being forgotten in the least. She sat on the couch painting her nails with even, precise strokes, headphones firmly over her ears. She hummed quietly to herself, a soft smile touching her lips at the stream of strong and very positive emotions pouring out of Trowa's bedroom.

-It's about time, you two.- Beck thought happily, nodding her head in time to Slither. [3]

[1] Blame David Eddings. Him and his damned prophecies...

[2] I drew blood this way while watching Evangelion earlier today. Virtual peanuts to whoever guesses what part it was.

[3] Guess what I was listening to when I wrote this.


	5. Chapter 5

And another chapter. Wow, I hate this story. It's consuming the better part of my life over here. I just can't stop writing, though. Being shanghaied by inspiration can be damned inconvenient at times.

This is a double update, so no review replies today!

"Excuse me." The voice stopped Duo in his tracks, for he could feel the speaker's attention directed solely at him. "I need some help."

His eyes traveled up two black leather boots, a long black skirt, black tanktop, and a black shoulderbag, out of which poked a very familiar pink plastic wand. They stopped a familiar smiling face surmounted by a windblown mop of long blond hair falling into mischievous aqua eyes.

"If it isn't Duo-chan!" Beck exclaimed, throwing her arms around his neck, much to the dismay of what was probably the entire male student body and giving him a hard squeeze that robbed him of breath for a moment.

"H-hello, Beck." Duo said nervously, squirming uncomfortably under the scrutiny of the crowd around them.

"Oh, that's right!" She exclaimed, letting him go. "You don't like being hugged! I totally forgot! Do you know where Trowa is? I would have gotten here a lot sooner and been able to find him on my own, but baka Tasuki wouldn't let me leave until I'd made him breakfast. Can you believe that lazy ecchi? And then he kissed me twice, so I had to go wash my face, and then I couldn't find my Moon Scepter, and I refuse to go anywhere without it, because it's really very effective against anyone who's mean to me, if you can believe that, and I really need to talk to Trowa before I go to school, and this place is really big! Maybe I wouldn't have been able to find him on my own after all. Are you gonna spend the night tonight? I'm making chicken Alfredo! You'll love it, trust me! You know I'm a good cook, and I'll work really hard if you're gonna be there, because you actually appreciate the effort I put into my meals, unlike Tasuki, who just eats and says it's 'okay.'"

Throughout the entire monologue, Beck was following a very embarrassed Duo through the crowded hall full of gawkers to Trowa's homeroom class, not noticing the brunette's deep red blush as she rambled on and on.

"I work my fingers to cramping to make him a decent meal, and all he can say is 'okay!' Can you believe him? Why the nerve of that punk! I should forbid him to eat anything I make, but I just can't bring myself to for some reason. Do you think maybe I'm in love with that hentai? I certainly hope I'm not. He's a mean bishonen, that his is. Dammit, I'm talking like Kenshin again! I'm never going near that annoying baka ever again! Kenshin, I mean. I kind of have to go near Tasuki, since I live with him, no da? You know, Seth might be right. Maybe I do watch too much anime. Kenshin's not really all that bad, he just gets on my nerves sometimes. Oh, is this is room?" Duo nodded, earning another hug and a peck on the nose before Beck flung the door open and ran inside, screaming 'Tro-chan!' at the top of her lungs.

"Maxwell." A familiar tanned hand slammed down on Duo's desk, making him wince. "I'm not going to attack you, Maxwell." Wufei said, glaring down at the brunette. "I don't have a death wish, and your puppy's watching."

"Can I help you?" Duo asked, giving himself a mental pat on the back for not stammering.

"Who was that blond who was following you around this morning?" Wufei asked, sounding sincerely interested in the answer.

"A friend." Duo said, deciding that maybe talking to Beck and Trowa so much had cured his stammers forever. "Her name's Beck."

"Is she your steady?" Wufei pressed. Duo was positive the Chinese boy was very interested in the answer to this question.

"No!" He said, more forcefully than he'd intended, his eyes widening involuntarily. "No. She's just a friend."

"That's nice to know." Wufei said, leaving without another word.

"What was that all about?" Trowa asked, sitting heavily on Duo's desk. "What did that asshole want?"

"He wanted to know if Beck and I were an item." Duo said, smiling at the very idea of himself with someone as hyperactive and social as the crazy blond otaku.

"He's welcome to try for her hand." Trowa snorted. "If she doesn't tear him to pieces, Tasuki will."

"And the only ones who don't realize that are Beck and Tasuki." Duo added. The two shared a private smile at the expense of their absent friends before the teacher came in and class started.

"But I wanna go to the pool!" Was the first thing Trowa heard upon entering his apartment.

"Well, I'm not fucking taking you!" Seth shouted from somewhere near the kitchen. "Why don't you get Fang Boy to take you?"

"Tasuki's asleep, though!" Beck countered with a wail. "Trowa says I can't wake Tasuki up when he's asleep anymore unless it's an emergency! Like when you set the kitchen stove on fire!"

"Then I'll wake him up! Just leave me the fuck alone!"

"You're never eating in this house again, you meanie!" She shouted, and the apartment was suddenly so quiet Trowa could hear Tasuki snoring in the back room and a soft noise that sounded suspiciously like sobbing coming from the kitchen.

"What is with you women and crying?" Trowa heard Seth growl, and he knew the Goth demon had been skillfully defeated. "All right, already! I'll take you to the goddamned pool! Just stop with the fucking tears!"

"Domo arigato, Seth-sama! I'll be ready in a minute!" She squealed, running past Trowa on her way to the bedroom to change. "Tro-chan! When did you get back?"

"Just now." Trowa said, patting her on the head. "Way to wear him down, Beck. Nice job."

"Why, thank you." She said, smiling cutely before skipping off into the back.

"I hate that woman." Seth said, cursing in his own language as Trowa walked into the kitchen. "I really, truly, fucking hate her."

"But not even the infamous Seth is immune to a woman's greatest weapon." Trowa said, smiling. "Waterworks."

"Don't tempt me, Barton. I'm in a killing mood right now, and this is all your fucking fault."

"But if you kill me, you'll have an unstable, untrained death demon who's easily five times as strong as you on the loose, burning down buildings and killing people before you can get to them." Trowa said calmly. "After he's killed you, of course. Don't worry; once you get there, she'll forget all about you and start playing with everyone and everything in sight. I just made it a rule that she can't go alone because she doesn't understand that there are people out there that will actually hurt her for no reason."

"Why not just assign her a permanent fucking bodyguard?" Seth demanded, still upset about having to tag along with a five-year-old in a fifteen-year-old body.

"I will, as soon as he realizes he wants to protect her from everyone and everything." Trowa said. "In the meantime, we'll just have to make do. Kill a criminal if it'll make you feel better."

"I hate you, Barton." Seth growled, stomping off to escort an impatient Beck to the pool.

"I know, Seth!" He called after his red-eyed friend. "I love you, too!" He chuckled quietly as the door slammed in response. "He's going to kill us all one of these days..."

"I'll admit the view is very nice." Trowa said, surveying the school from a new perspective. "But why in the world would you spend lunch in a tree?"

"Shh." Duo said, motioning for Trowa to keep his voice down. "The reason should be here any minute... ah, there they are!"

A group of four or five female students stopped directly underneath the two boys and sat down on the grass, talking animatedly.

"- I swear it!" One asserted, pausing to tear a bite of her soft taco. "If I'm lyin, I'm dyin!"

"No girl in her right mind would turn down Wufei!" Another protested, pulling out her own lunch -a salad- as she talked. "That's like telling God you'd really rather not go to Heaven when you die!"

"I'm telling you, though, she really did! She flat-out told him no!" The first girl exclaimed. "And that's not even the best part!"

Duo grinned at Trowa, settling into a more comfortable position on his chosen branch as the group under them leaned in, demanding the girl tell them what she knew.

"The best part was when this total hottie with red hair came out of nowhere and punched Wufei!" There was the usual squealing for a moment before the girl continued. "And he said to Wufei 'what the fuck are you doing to my koibito?' Only he had the cutest accent ever, like a mountain bandit or something, so it sounded like 'Wha th fuck're ya doin ta my koibito?' It was awesome!"

"What's a koibito?" The girl with the salad asked, shoving a forkful of lettuce and dressing into her mouth.

"It's Japanese for girlfriend." One of the other girls spoke up, sighing wistfully. "Oh, how I want a boyfriend like that!"

"You should have seen this guy! He looked so mature-" The two boys almost gave themselves away by laughing at the thought of Tasuki acting mature. "- and he was so cute! He threatened to kill Wufei if he ever so much as looked at her again! It's no wonder she turned him down!"

"Get a picture next time you see him!" One of the girls commanded, bouncing up and down. "I wanna see the guy that can punch Wufei and get away with it!"

The girls turned to other school gossip, and Trowa and Duo turned their attention to their own lunches, keeping one ear on the group until the girls packed up and headed to class.

"See why I like this tree?" Duo said, smiling as he clamored down the trunk. "We'd better hurry, or Mr. Kushranada'll skin us alive for being late."

Duo and Trowa sat impatiently through Creative writing, wanting to get back to the apartment and find out the truth behind the gossip. When the bell finally did ring, Mr. Kushranada asked them both to stay after so he could discuss something with them.

"I've noticed something recently." Mr. Kushranada said, running one hand through his short ginger hair. "The two of you are my best students by far, but you seem... distracted lately. Your work isn't suffering any, but if something's going on, I'd appreciate you telling me about it, okay?"

"Yes, sir." Trowa said. He was about to say more when a blond whirlwind nearly knocked the door off its hinges getting it open.

"Tro-chan! Duo-chan! Guess what! Guess what, guess what, guess what?" Beck exclaimed, lunging at them and attaching herself to Mr. Kushranada's neck instead. "Konnichiwa." She said, blinking. "You must be Kushranada-sensei. Watashi wa Beck-chan desu! Hajimemashite!"

"Beck." Trowa said, calling the energetic blond's attention away from his teacher for a moment. "English, please. And stop glomping my teacher, will you?"

She immediately let go, landing on her rump and scrambling to her feet. "Gomen nasai! I mean, sorry! Hi. My name's Beck! It's very nice to meet you!"

"The pleasure is mine, I assure you." Mr. Kushranada said, taking Beck's hand and kissing the back of it.

"Aw, you smooth talker, you!" Beck said, giggling and flushing a little. "Oh, yeah! I came her for a reason! Guess what, Tro-chan! Do you know what Tasuki-san called me today? Do you? He called me his 'koibito!' Do you know what a koibito is? Do ya? Do ya? I'll tell you what a koibito is! It's girlfriend! Tasuki-san called me his girlfriend! And he punched this really mean Chinese boy who kept asking me out and wouldn't leave me alone! Can you believe it? Then he hugged me and took me home and he had a dozen chances to kiss me, but he didn't! Tasuki-san likes me, Tro-chan! Can you believe it? Can you?"

"Beck! Stop talking and take slow, deep breaths." Duo said, gently shaking the girl's shoulders. "We don't want you to pass out on us, okay? Calm down."

"Okay!" She said happily, doing as she was told. "But isn't this great, Duo-chan?"

"Yes, it is. But who's gonna cook us dinner when you guys go out? Seth?"

"Seth can't cook to save his non-existent soul." Beck laughed. "But speaking of dinner, I'm gonna make us a feast! Honey-glazed ham, buttermilk biscuits, mashed potatoes, vegetable soup, a fresh green salad, definitely sparkling cider since I'm too young to drink, and cake for dessert! It's gonna be the best meal I've ever cooked! Do you have any friends we can invite? I want people to come! You two, Tasuki, Seth, and me just aren't enough! Oh, Lien has to come, too!"

"I don't think that's a very good idea." Trowa said quietly.

"What's not a good idea?" Beck asked, pausing in her plans.

"Lien coming. I'm afraid he wouldn't enjoy it very much."

"Really?" Trowa nodded, and Beck frowned thoughtfully. "I wonder why? Okay, we won't invite Lien if he won't have fun. But there has to be someone else we can invite! And we can make it a joint party for you guys, too!"

"U-us?" Duo stammered in surprise.

"Yes, you. I was home that night, baka. I put my headphones on so I wouldn't hear anything, but you just can't mistake that kind of emotion! The fairies were overjoyed that you're finally happy, Duo, and they want me to do something special for you, too!"

"Fairies?" Mr. Kushranada repeated, raising one eyebrow.

Beck gasped, jumping a half a foot into the air. "Oh, Kushranada-sensei! Y-you're still here! Yeah, fairies... About that..."

"So are all three of you demons?"

"D-demons? Kushranada-sensei, you're so silly! There's no such thing as demons!"

"Call me Trieze. If it'll make you feel better, I'm part muse myself."

"You're part muse?!" Beck exclaimed in astonishment, her eyes widening. "I've never met anyone with muse blood before! I've got a smidgen of water demon blood in me, but I only have passive abilities, like I can sense demons and scry if I have my bowl, which I carry everywhere! Wow, this is so cool! I swear, Mako-san's gonna love this! It's always been her dream to meet a muse!"

"I'm a hybrid." Trowa said, ignoring Beck's rambling. "Part earth demon, part truth demon, and part human. Since my demon blood outweighs my human blood, I'm not considered a half-breed except by Purists."

"And you, Mr. Maxwell?" Trieze asked, turning to the skinny teen, who was laughing at Beck, who in turn was currently dancing around the room, babbling about finally finding a muse.

"Me? I-I'm a death demon."

Trieze blinked at Duo for a moment, then shook his head. "Well, that's a surprise. To think I've had a death demon sitting right there in front of me the whole year and never even suspected..."

"His natural shields are too strong for passive detection!" Beck offered, dancing back to the three. "Since I can sense demons, I knew he was one, but it took some hardcore scrying to find out he was a death demon, and he almost cracked my bowl, his shields are so strong! If I didn't know any better, I'd say he was a demi-demon! I'm glad he didn't break my bowl, though, because I have to use onyx, and onyx bowls are so expensive! Mine was a gift from my sensei back home, and it must have cost him a fortune! At least a few hundred dollars! Flawless onyx big enough to make a proper scrying bowl is so rare! Purists have most of it too, and I hate Purists! Can you believe they won't sell me the herbs I need to purify my bowl just because I'm not a full demon? Some creatures can just be so stupid!"

"Does she always talk this much?" Trieze asked as Beck continued her anti-Purist rant in the background.

"Sometimes more." Trowa said, smiling. "If you think this is bad, you should hear her arguing with Tasuki. Not only are there two people talking this much, but they're also much louder."

"Anyway, we'll have the party this Saturday!" Beck interrupted, switching topics again. "Each of you has to invite at least one person to come, okay? It'll be really boring if I know everybody there! I've got to invite someone, too, and so does Tasuki! Do you think Seth-sama will come? Seth-sama's such a meanie, but I like him. I think it's kawaii the way he's always mad at something, but don't tell him I said that, or he'll be mad at me, and he's not so kawaii when he's mad at me. Does Seth-sama always act that way, or is he just mean to people? You don't think he's a Purist, do you? It would be really weird if he was, considering his best and only friend has human blood in him. And why is it you're his only friend anyway, Tro-chan? Why can't I be his friend, too? Let's get going, guys! I've got to make dinner, and we've got a party to plan!" She skipped happily out of the classroom, blowing a quick kiss in Trieze's direction, still planning the party out loud.

"See you two tomorrow." Trieze said, waving the boys after their friend.

"I was thinking." Duo said as he and Trowa walked down the dark street to his place. "I might have some people we could invite to the party."

"Really? Who?" Trowa asked, draping one arm casually over Duo's shoulders. Duo, in turn, leaned against the taller boy, smiling.

"There's this guy named Quatre Winner. He's in our PE class. You know, the really nice blond? He and his girlfriend Usagi are just about the only people in the school who were never once mean to me. They both helped me out a lot."

"And you want to invite them as a token of thanks?"

"That's about it."

The two rounded a corner and ran straight into someone else.

"Aw, shit!" The someone, who turned out to be Wufei, said, scrambling to his feet. "It's you two."

"What's wrong, Wufei?" Duo asked, seeing the slightly scared expression on the boy's face, as Seth rounded the next corner.

"Get back here, you Chinese monkey!" Seth yelled. "I'm gonna kill you this time!"

"What did you do?" Trowa asked evenly. "Bump into him?"

"Yeah, something like that." Wufei said, looking over his shoulder in time to see Seth lob a fireball at him.

Duo darted around Wufei and caught the fireball, absorbing it just like Trowa had been trying to teach him. "It worked!" He breathed, smiling. "Did you see that, Trowa? I did it! I absorbed it!"

"I saw, Duo." Trowa said, returning the smile.

"This shit's too weird, man." Wufei said, shaking his head. "I'm getting out of here. Later, freaks."

"You're not going anywhere." Trowa countered, grabbing the back of Wufei's jacket. "At least not until we've worked some things out."

"I'm killing that little punk." Seth growled, pulling one of his curved knives. "Get out of my way, Maxwell."

"No." Duo said. "I'm not going to let you hurt him, Seth."

"If I remember correctly, he's the shithead that almost killed you." Seth said, pausing less than a foot from Duo. "So why the hell are you protecting him, huh?"

"Because two wrongs don't make a right, Seth." Duo said. "We grew up differently. You never really learned the lessons I live by. I can't just let you hurt someone, not and live with myself."

"You are some kind of idiot, Maxwell. The bastard puts you in the hospital repeatedly, and you're saying I can't even nick him? There's something wrong with your head. Now get out of my way!"

"I really didn't want to do this..." Duo muttered, sighing. "I'm sorry, Seth." He began to glow faintly violet, and an invisible force knocked Seth back into a lamppost some ten or twelve feet away.

"Oh, so now you're gonna fight back?" Seth demanded, getting to his feet. "You do-gooders are completely nuts!"

"Maybe so, but that's just the way we are." Duo said. "I really don't want to hurt you, Seth. You're a nice guy sometimes. I sort of consider you a friend. Can we please just not do this?"

"Fine, you fucking Warrior of Light." Seth said with a disgusted snort, turning and walking back the way he'd come.

"What the fuck was that, Maxwell?" Wufei demanded, staring at what had once been his favorite punching bag. "What the hell are you?"

"I'm a demon." Duo said. "And I'd appreciate it if you'd call me Duo from now on, okay?"

"This is too fucking weird. There's no such thing as demons!"

"If demons didn't exist, you'd probably be dead by now." Trowa said, letting go of Wufei's jacket. "Seth's a natural-born killer. He's also a fire demon, but he prefers to use his hands in killing. If he says he's going to kill you, chances are you'll be dead inside an hour. You're very lucky you ran into Duo, because not even I can turn Seth once he's mad."

"Well...shit." Wufei said, turning and falling against the wall of a handy building. "What do you plan on doing to me now?"

"Nothing." Duo said, blinking. "Why would we do anything to you?"

"Man, you are some kind of airhead! I know what's gotta be the biggest secret in the history of secrets here! I know you're a demon! And you're just gonna let me walk away?"

"Well, I wouldn't have saved you from Seth just to kill you myself." Duo said, confused. "I think I can count on you not to tell anyone about this."

"And what makes you so sure?" Wufei asked, immediately glancing over at Trowa, who was scowling dangerously.

"You remember the redhead who punched you for hitting on the blond who was following me around the other day? If you tell anyone I'm a demon, I'll tell him you were bothering her again, and she'll back me up. Beck doesn't like you very much."

"You wouldn't!" Wufei exclaimed. "He'd kill me!"

"No, just hurt you really bad." Trowa said. "Tasuki can be very protective when he isn't snoring."

"That's not very nice, Trowa. But speaking of snoring, we need to get home before I collapse." Duo grabbed Trowa's hand and started down the road, waving over his shoulder. "We'll see you tomorrow, Wufei!"

Wufei lay in bed later that night, staring at the ceiling. He had too many things on his mind to sleep, all of them centered on Duo Maxwell.

-I'm pretty sure he wasn't lying about being a demon. Besides, how else can he do weird magic shit like that? But if he really is a demon, why'd he let us kick his ass so many times? Did he just find out himself or something? He acted all surprised when he caught that fireball and made it disappear. Maybe that Barton kid's teaching him how to control his demon powers? That makes sense. -

Wufei rolled out of bed and walked over to his window, leaning on the sill and staring at the patch of stars visible through the clouds.

-But then wouldn't Barton be a demon, too? He's not human, if he's teaching Maxwell magic. And what about that other dude? I think Maxwell called him 'Seth'... he's a demon, too? - He snorted to himself, switching his focus to the street below. "This is fucking ridiculous." He said out loud. "A few hours ago, I didn't even believe demons existed, and suddenly they're all over the place? Life's fucked up, man."

Duo closed his locker and swung his bag onto his shoulder, looking down the hall. Seeing his objective, he walked right past his homeroom class to the locker of a girl with very long blond pigtails who had patched him up a time or two and defended him from the student body at large.

"U-Usagi?" He said, calling her attention away from the tall brunette she'd been talking to.

"Oh, hi Duo." Usagi said, smiling brightly. "I'll see you later, Heero." She told the strange brunette, who nodded and left without a word. "To what do I owe the honor?" She asked Duo, giggling.

"Um... I was wondering... w-would you like to go to a party this Saturday?"

"Duo, you do know I have a boyfriend, right?" Usagi asked, suddenly fearing for the boy's mental health. You just did not cross Quatre like that.

"Y-yeah! Of course I know. In fact, I-I was wondering if you and Quatre could come."

"Maybe..." Usagi said thoughtfully, mentally reviewing her weekend calendar. "What time is it? What's the occasion?"

"You know, I-I'm really not sure..." Duo said, surprised. "It's around eight at night, but the occasion has kind of slipped my mind, if I ever knew it." He blushed a little, but managed not to get too red.

"Well, I'm free, but I'll have to ask Q-chan before I make it definite."

"O-okay. Thanks. See ya!" He added, ducking into his homeroom just ahead of the bell.

Take that!! I have mental problems! Yay!


	6. Chapter 6

To DragonFlame Mistress- Am I really that predictable? Or was the set-up that obvious? Either way, I'm glad you're glad! It was only a double update because I wrote chapter five while I was writing chapter two… Heehee…

* * *

Chapter Six

* * *

"I hate my life…" Wufei muttered, sprawled across his desk. There were dark circles under his eyes, he looked like he hadn't eaten or bathed in days, and his hair was down from its usual ponytail and fell into his face, and obscuring his vision.

"Wufei, I'd appreciate it if you sat up." Miss Mizuno said softly, patting his shoulder. "And if you can't do that, you need to go home, okay?"

"Can you carry me?" Wufei asked plaintively, actually wanting to go home but not sure if he could stand under his own power, much less walk.

Half the class laughed, while most of the girls looked sickened, dismayed, or worried.

"Um… Miss Mizuno?" Duo said timidly, raising his hand. "I…I could walk him home, if it's okay."

"What a splendid idea, Duo!" Miss Mizuno exclaimed, clapping her hands smartly. "Why don't you and Trowa take him? You're the only two who understand the material anyway, and we can't have these slackers copying you."

"A-alright." Duo stammered, blushing a little at the compliment and standing.

* * *

He and Trowa managed to get Wufei all the way out of the building before either one realized that neither knew where the boy lived.

"So, Wufei, where do you live?" Duo asked. "Or did you want us to dump you in the park?"

"Can you kill me instead?" Wufei responded weakly. "At least if you do it, it'll be pretty painless. That weirdo with the red eyes, though…"

Duo and Trowa exchanged a look over their classmate's head; so Seth was still out to get Wufei. He must have actually done something wrong, rather than just annoy the fire demon.

"C'mon, Wufei." Duo said cheerfully. "You know I won't kill you, and I won't let Seth either. You just need a good night's sleep, and you'll be fine."

"But Seth probably knows where he lives by now, so we should take him to your place." Trowa interjected.

"You're right." Duo said, smiling at his lover. "Seth has no idea where my hole in the wall is. He'll probably be safest there."

* * *

Duo's 'Hole in the Wall'

* * *

"He looks like shit." Beck commented evenly, holding the door open for the boys.

"What are you doing in my apartment?" Duo countered, sitting Wufei down on the couch.

"Seth showed up and kicked me out so he and Tasuki could talk. So why's he here?"

"He needs a place to hide out in case Seth comes looking for him." Trowa explained. "We need to get back to school, so would you mind watching him?"

"That's not fair!" Beck looked helplessly from Trowa to Wufei and back, a panicked look crossing her face. "You can't do this to me, Trowa Barton! You can't, you can't, you can't! It's not fair to use me like this and make me watch him!"

"I knew I could count on you." Trowa smiled, grabbing Duo's wrist and dragging him to the door. "And remember, it goes against your oath to kill!" He added over his shoulder as the door closed behind them.

"Do we really have to go back to school?" Duo asked, trying to keep up with Trowa's longer stride.

"Of course not." Trowa said with a shrug. "But we have the rest of the day free, and damned if I'm going to waste it watching him."

"I knew it." Duo groaned.

"But you love me anyway, right? Now let's go catch a movie."

* * *

Back Upstairs

* * *

Beck stared at the closed door for a moment, torn between running after Trowa and smashing his smug face into a wall, throwing the idiot on the couch out the window, or collapsing where she stood. Finally, she opted for none of the above and marched into the kitchen to make some tea.

* * *

Trowa's Place

* * *

Seth hit the streets feeling decidedly uneasy. Tasuki hadn't known as much as Seth had hoped; he'd barely made any progress at all after nearly an hour of talking.

The red-eyed demon wandered off aimlessly, choosing directions at random until he found himself in a crowded shopping district. Having nothing better to do, he made his way to a small, windowless building sandwiched between a Starbucks and a Waldenbooks.

The dim interior, lit by black and red candles thick enough to require three wicks and a single red-paneled lantern, was nearly deserted. Two boys Seth's apparent age sat in one corner, whispering to each other. The looked up briefly when the door banged closed behind him, but went back to their conversation when they decided they didn't know him.

"What the hell are you doing here?" The woman behind the bar demanded, glaring at Seth with fire in her emerald eye.

"Hello to you, too." Seth snapped back, dropping onto the nearest stool. "Nice to see you again after all this time. Can't you at least be civil, Rebbekha?"

"No," Rebbekha replied shortly, shoving blood red bangs out of her other eye. "I cannot be civil to you. Who in their right mind would, after you up and leave for more than a year? The least you could have done was write me just once!"

"You're drawing attention." Seth interrupted quietly, nodding in the direction of the two boys. "Calm down and get me a beer. I didn't come here to argue."

"Of course not," She scoffed, grabbing a mug, filling it, and slamming it down in front of him. "After all, arguing would show you cared enough to disagree with me. The all-mighty Seth doesn't feel; he has no emotions. He can toy with a girl's heart and leave her high and dry whenever she shows signs of wanting to get serious.

"Well, let me tell you something, buster. I feel. I may not be human, but I was still cursed with their emotions, and you can't just up and leave when you feel like it!"

Seth just sat there, apparently oblivious to the ranting woman.

"I don't know why I bother!" Rebbekha exclaimed, throwing her hands up in frustration and defeat. "Go live your perfect fucking life, Seth, but don't come near me again or I'll kill your ass!" She yelled, knocking his beer onto the floor. "On the house! Get out!"

"Fine." Seth said, standing calmly and walking to the door. As he closed it softly behind him, he could have sworn he heard her yell, 'what are you fuckers looking at?!'

* * *

Duo's House

* * *

Beck gave a satisfied grunt, wiping the dust cloth across the top of the bookshelf one last time. The entire house, save the bedroom, very nearly gleamed, a welcome comparison to the way it had looked when she'd climbed in through the open window.

She stood for a moment, listening for sounds in the bedroom. Hearing none, she eased down the hallway and peeked through the open door.

Sleeping like a baby.

Beck giggled quietly and snuck back to the kitchen to check on her soup and make some sandwiches.

Once lunch was done, she loaded it all onto a tray and carried it into the bedroom. She stood for a moment, looking for a place to put the tray down, but the only furniture in the room was the bed. With a shrug, she kicked the side of the bed hard enough to shake her patient awake.

"Lunchtime!" She announced brightly when he opened his eyes. "Today's menu includes tomato soup, grilled cheese sandwiches, ham, cheese, and lettuce sandwiches, fruit, orange juice, and ginger ale! Now sit up before I dump the lot of it on your head!"

* * *

In a Movie Theater Across Town

* * *

Duo stretched, yawning. His neck hurt from sleeping in a chair for the past hour or so.

"You okay?" Trowa asked, putting his arm around Duo's waist.

"Fine." Duo assured him, leaning his head on Trowa's shoulder. "My neck's a little stiff is all."

"Well, you did spend the majority of the movie asleep on me." Trowa laughed. "That's enough to give anyone a neckache. Let's go get something to eat. I'm starved."

"Sometimes, I think you're always starved." Duo smiled, closing his eyes. "There are two things you always want; food and kisses."

"Kisses more than food." Trowa agreed, unrepentant.

"You're impossible."

"I know."

* * *

The End

* * *

_I know this is short and all, but please bear with me! I'm trying to get more done on my stories, but this one is giving me migraines. See, I know where the story is, and I know where I want it to go, I just don't know how to get it there. Again, please bear with me while I muddle through on this!_


	7. Chapter 7

To ZmajGoddess- Glad to know I'm not alone in this… but I've decided a few issues, and the story's starting to work with me instead of against me. And Duo saving Wufei was indeed cute! I loved that part!

* * *

"You cleaned."

"You noticed."

"I had no idea my walls could look so white,"

"Thank you."

"Where's the patient, Beck?"

"I sent him home."

"By himself!"

"Oh, he's fine, Trowa! It's not like he was sick or anything, it was just a curse, and not a very good curse at that, it only took me half a minute to reverse it, and the caster didn't even mask it, like no one would ever figure out he was cursed! I swear, it's almost insulting how easy it was to reverse it, and I'm almost glad I couldn't stop the backlash in time, because if you're going to curse someone, the least you can do is do it right, and Tasuki called because you didn't come home after school and he wanted to know if Duo had seen you, and some chick named Usagi called for you, Duo, and she said she'd be coming to the party on Saturday, and Lien's house collapsed."

"Lien's house _what!_"

"Oh, it's okay, Trowa, it's not like he was inside when it happened! He said he'd call me as soon as he found a place to stay, and I'm gonna go home now, okay? See you guys later!"

* * *

"Why the hell are you back here?" Rebbekha demanded sharply, glaring emerald fire at Seth.

"I have some information you might be interested in obtaining," Seth said, not even bothering to claim a stool for himself.

"Why would I be interested in anything _you_ have to say?"

"Because it concerns your sister,"

Rebbekha's hands stilled momentarily, then went back to filling mugs and passing them out to the patrons at the bar. "Either tell me or leave, Seth," She said finally. "I don't have time for your games right now,"

"Seems our little girl's gone and got herself a boyfriend," He told her, smiling slightly at the redhead's reaction.

"She's _what!_" Rebbekha demanded, slamming the mug she'd just filled against the bar so hard that both cracked and the glass shattered.

"She'd dating." Seth elaborated.

"Not while I'm still breathing, she's not! Wait till I get my hands on the slimy little bastard! Then we'll see who's dating my sister!"

* * *

"Duo, have you seen my green blouse?" Beck asked, poking her head into the living room. "I can't find the damned thing anywhere!"

"It's in the bathroom, in the hamper under the sink," Duo told her, calmly setting out the before-dinner snacks he'd helped the blond make.

"Arigato!" She thanked him, ducking back down the hall, then popping back out when the doorbell rang. "I'll get it!"

"No, you won't," Trowa said evenly, grabbing her arm as she went past him. "_I_ will get the door, and _you_ will go get dressed." He told her, staring pointedly at her bra.

"...Oops…" Beck said, blushing. "Yeah… I'll go get my shirt."

"Good girl," Trowa said, patting her on the head before going to answer the door.

"Hello, Trowa."

"M-Mr. Kushrenada? What are you doing here?"

"Your friend Beck invited me." Trieze explained. "Can I come in?"

"Oh! Uh… sure. Come in." Trowa said, stepping aside and ushering his teacher into the living room. "Have a seat."

"Kushrenada-sensei!" Beck exclaimed, bursting into the living room fully clothed. "You're here! I was afraid you wouldn't be able to make it after all!" She continued, latching herself onto his neck.

"It's not every day a man gets invited to a party like this, you know," Trieze told her, smiling. "I wouldn't miss it for the world. I take it the redhead glaring daggers at me is Tasuki?"

"Oh, hush, Fang Boy." Beck said over her shoulder, sliding down to the floor. "He's too old to tempt me, so you just keep that jealousy where it belongs."

The doorbell rang again, saving _someone_ from certain embarrassment, and Trowa led Quatre, Usagi, and a boy with messy brown hair and hard blue eyes into the living room.

"Wow…" Usagi said, staring at the many platters of food spread across the room. "Are we allowed to eat any of it, or is it just for decoration?"

"Need a bucket for all that drool?" Beck retorted, holding out a platter of bite-sized ice cream sandwiches. "Of course you can eat it! That's why I cooked it! My name's Beck."

"Usagi," Usagi said, inhaling a handful of food. "This is my boyfriend Quatre, and this is my bodyguard, Heero. He wouldn't let me come unless he did, too," She added apologetically to Trowa over her shoulder. "He's paranoid."

"Hn." Heero said, glaring around the room.

"There happen to be ladies present, buddy," Trowa said softly, giving Heero a glare of his own. "Watch your mouth."

"What'd he say?" Beck asked, busy stuffing her face right alongside Usagi.

"You don't wanna know." Trowa told her.

"So you know what all those grunts and noises mean?" Quatre asked politely, watching with a tolerant smile as Heero berated Usagi for eating food that hadn't been tested. "Usagi and I have been trying to figure Heero's secret language out ever since we met him."

"And why exactly does Miss Tsukino need a bodyguard?" Trieze asked, and Quatre jumped.

"Ack! Mr. Kushrenada! What are you doing here!" The blond paused for a moment, then added, "If you don't mind my asking?"

"I invited him," Beck said. "Hi. I'm Beck. I cooked all the food and organized the party. You are?"

"Quatre Reberba Winner. I'm honored to be in the presence of such an excellent cook as yourself." Quatre said with a formal bow.

"Hey, you didn't answer my question, Quatre," Trieze pouted. "Why does your girlfriend need a bodyguard?"

The doorbell rang again, and Beck went to answer it with what could only be described as a squeal.

* * *

"Hige, who's she?" Beck asked, staring down at a girl no older than six attached to the latest arrival's leg. "Is she your lo-ove child?"

"Actually," Hige said, stepping inside by main force, "she's my charge. Her parents okayed her coming, and I'll give you a quarter of my pay, but you can't turn us out! I have no idea what to do with a five-year-old!"

"Hey. Hige." The little girl said quietly, tugging on Hige's pant leg. "Who's the crazy lady?"

"Sakura, that's rude." A voice from the hall said softly. "Now how about we all go inside? We wouldn't want to waste Trowa's money on heating the great outdoors."

"Okay, Kiba!" Sakura said cheerfully, skipping into the living room and immediately colliding with Trieze.

* * *

Two hours later, Sakura had worn herself out enough for a short nap with Usagi in Beck's room, Heero had managed to scare everyone witless at least once, Seth had come home, and Trieze still didn't know why Usagi needed a bodyguard. Then the surprise guest showed up.

Someone banged loudly on the front door, and Duo went to see who it was before Sakura woke up. Muffled conversation drifted back to the partiers, most of it angry, and Duo appeared, pale and wide-eyed, leading a tall redheaded woman dressed in forest green.

"R-Rebbekha!" Beck demanded incredulously, staring at the woman. "What are you doing here!"

"Where's the son of a bitch who calls himself your boyfriend?" Rebbekha demanded, sweeping the room. "It better not be him." She added, glaring at Trieze.

"If it was?" Trieze asked.

"I'd beat you to a bloody pulp. Twice. Then I'd castrate you."

"In that case, it's a good thing I'm not her boyfriend, huh?"

"I'm 'er steady," Tasuki volunteered, stepping forward. "An' you would be?"

"I'm her older sister, asshole," Rebbekha stated, grabbing the front of Tasuki's shirt in one hand and pulling his face inches from hers. "and you'd better hang on my every fucking word, because I'm only gonna say this once. You make her cry, I make you scream; you break her heart, I break your skull. Do we have an understanding?"

"Uh… yeah?"

"Good." The redhead growled, shoving Tasuki away and turning to Trowa. "Where's that good-for-nothing bastard?"

"In his room," Trowa told her calmly. "Can you take it somewhere else this time? There's a young child asleep in the other room, and she doesn't need the benefit of your advanced vocabulary just yet."

"Fine by me."

* * *

_Very short chapter, but I figured that would be okay, considering how long it's been since I've updated. Next chapter, we'll finally get going on the prophecy, so just hold on a little while longer, okay?_


	8. Chapter 8

"Good news!" Beck exclaimed, bouncing into the living room. "Lots of good news! Kushrenada-sensei had fun at the party and wants to get together like that again sometime, Usagi and Quatre want me to cater their next party, Heero challenged Trowa to a duel if you can believe that, and Lien called and said he's staying with a friend of his back in the woods west of town named Chaud, and Chaud's got a girlfriend who's supposed to be really cute, and I'm gonna visit him tomorrow! Who's coming with?"

"I'll go." Duo volunteered timidly.

"Then I'm going, too." Trowa agreed, smiling down at Duo.

"So'm I." Tasuki said, glaring at the book in front of him. "Gimme a break from all a' this gibb'rish."

"You're the one who wanted to help out with the prophesy." Beck said, shrugging. "Now, I'm gonna go pack us a lunch!"

* * *

"What the hell are you doing out here?"

"None of your fucking business." Rebbekha snapped without looking up. She'd know Seth's voice anywhere; visual confirmation was unnecessary.

"It is if you're moping around in the rain in front of my building, blocking the door." He replied. "Now, I'll ask again; what the hell are you doing out here?"

"Not that it matters, but I got kicked out." She replied acidly. "Apparently, someone with red eyes and a nasty temper, who shall remain nameless for the duration of this conversation, showed up asking for me and got fresh with the dorm mistress. So I'm out on my ass with nowhere to go. Happy?"

"Hell no. Now get off your fat ass and come inside before you catch pneumonia. I don't want to have to tell your fucking sister you died because you were too stupid to get in out of the rain."

* * *

"Here; this should fit you okay." Seth said, thrusting a plain black shirt under her nose. "Go in my room. I'll sleep on the couch tonight."

Wordlessly, Rebbekha snatched the proffered garment and stomped off to the indicated room, slamming the door behind her.

She'd managed to soak her own clothes, with the exception of her underwear, past the saturation point and wound up drenching the carpet getting undressed. Leaving her clothing in a sodden heap on the floor, she pulled on the shirt, which turned out to be too big for her, and stood in the center of the room, staring at the large unmade bed in front of her.

Seth's bed.

She'd never seen the inside of his apartment before; they didn't have that kind of a relationship. Sometimes he'd pick her up at work and take her to a hotel, but he'd never invited her home with him.

Feeling like a child sneaking candy before dinner, she sat down on the edge of the bed, surprised to find it softer than her own. She gave an experimental bounce, then pushed herself into the middle and bounced again. She bounced a little higher, then even higher than that, until she was coming completely off the bed with each bounce.

With an uncharacteristic giggle, she flopped backwards, wondering at the feel of Seth's sheets against her bare skin.

"I've never seen you so happy." Seth commented dryly from the doorway. "You'd think you were drugged, acting like a goddamn schoolgirl."

"Fuck off, Seth." She told him, sitting up and glaring at him. "It's just another one of my emotions; it should wear off soon. And don't worry, I'm not contagious."

The next thing she knew, he was on top of her, pinning her to the bed. She put up a token resistance, although both knew that he was much stronger than her. Not even what little magic the redhead possessed would get the fire demon off her.

In the familiar ritual of their long and rocky relationship, he captured her lips in a long and fierce kiss comprised more of need than any real emotion. She didn't kiss him back; she never did, no matter how much she wanted to. She didn't want to give him the satisfaction.

When he finally let her breathe again, she just lay there, glaring up at him, waiting for him to make his next move.

"You gonna fuck me or what?" She demanded when he did nothing.

"Do you love me?" He asked suddenly, shifting his weight so that he was sitting on her stomach instead of her thighs. "Or is this just lust?"

"What's the difference?" Rebbekha retorted, turning her head to stare out the window.

"Dammit, woman, I'm serious! _Do you or do you not fucking love me?_"

She turned back to him, staring into his eyes to gauge the fire demon's sincerity.

"Yes," She said quietly, shifting uncomfortably. "If you really must know, yes, I love you. I've loved you ever since I met you. Maybe even before."

"More than your sister?"

"I don't know." She answered honestly. "If it came down to choosing between you and her, I'd probably kill myself. What about you? Do you love me?"

"I don't even know what love is." Seth whispered, and Rebbekha could _feel_ the pain that mystery caused him jarring through her heart like lightning. "I think… I hope I love you. Or else what do I have to live for?"

"Even if you don't really love me, I'm still here." She reminded him. "I don't give a damn if I'm just an object to you; as long as I'm _your_ object, I'm fine with it."

"Good."

* * *

Rebbekha woke slowly to unfamiliar warmth. She opened her eyes, blinking a few times to clear them, and smiled.

"You're smiling." Seth commented, sounding surprised.

"You're here." She responded, snuggling a little closer to him. "You've never stayed all night before."

"Does me being here really make you that happy?"

"Of course. Every time, I've fallen asleep wondering if maybe this time I won't be alone when I wake up. Call it a fondest wish, if you will."

"Makes me wish I'd given in and stayed before. You have a beautiful smile."

"You're making me blush."

"That just makes you cuter."

"Are we acting like a normal couple?"

"I guess. Does that make us at least somewhat normal?"

"Maybe. I hope so."

"So do I."

* * *

"You're sure it's around here?" Trowa asked for the tenth time in half as many minutes.

"Positive." Beck sighed, resisting the urge to kick Trowa in the shin. "It's only a little further, and if you'd just _shut up for a minute_, we could get there in peace. Hint, hint."

"Whatever." Trowa sighed, stretching and staring up at the sky. Or at the tree branches blocking out the sky, to be more exact.

They'd taken the bus as far out as they could, then hiked the remaining mile to Chaud's house. Duo and Beck seemed to be enjoying the walk, but Tasuki was lazy by nature, and Trowa wasn't in the mood for strenuous exercise at the moment, so only half the group was having fun.

Though Trowa didn't mind as much as he pretended; after all, nothing that made Duo smile could be all that bad.

* * *

"We're here!" Beck announced cheerfully, running up the steps onto the porch and giving an extravegant bow.

"'Bout friggin time." Tasuki muttered sourly, stomping up the steps to the door. "We're gettin' a cab back, wench."

"Ah, the exercise is good for you." Beck said with a smile, ringing the bell.

"Coming!" A voice called, and something inside crashed to the floor. What sounded like inventive cursing reached the group, and Beck giggled.

"Sit!" Someone ordered sharply, and the door was yanked open to reveal a downcast brunette sitting in the middle of the foyer, hands in his lap, and an angry redhead holding the remains of a vase in one hand. "Hi." The redhead said, visibly forcing himself to calm down. "Come on in. You must be Beck and co."

"Yup!" Beck exclaimed happily, stepping inside and attacking the brunette. "Konichiwa, Lien!"

"Hey, Beck! Who're your friends? Hi, Trowa. I broke Chaud's stuff again."

"I figured." Trowa said with a sigh, catching Duo's hand and leading him around the almost-chaos. "You should be more careful with other people's things."

"I'm trying." Lien said cheerfully, managing to stand up with Beck still attached to his neck. "But it's kind of hard."

"I'm sure you'll do fine."

* * *

_Yup. Another short-ass chapter by yours truly. I haven't worked on Voices in so long... It got to the point where it was almost abandoned! So I'm putting this little bit up to prove I haven't forgotten this! I swear, I'll try to get something up much, much sooner next time!_


	9. Chapter 9

To Mystery-child-001- You mean someone's still reading this? Wow. Um… once I get over the shock that someone else still remembers this story, I'll get working on the next chapter.

* * *

"At least it was only a vase, Chaud." Beck said soothingly, patting the redhead on the back. "He burned my house down, remember?"

"Well, when you put it that way, a priceless Ming dynasty vase doesn't seem like that big a deal, I suppose." Chaud sighed, tossing the last few fragments into the wastebasket.

"That's the spirit!" Beck exclaimed cheerfully, grinning. "Now, let's all go somewhere that's not full of breakables. It's been ages since I saw Lien!"

* * *

Duo stayed glued to Trowa's arm the entire way to the sitting room. The house was very nearly as big as his school, and he wasn't afraid to admit it intimidated him.

Actually, it wasn't so much the house that intimidated him as it was the interior. Someone had gone to great lengths to make it look as if every room, hall, and staircase had been carved into a tree, up to and including natural wood walls and a curved ceiling. In furtherance of the natural theme, plants weren't potted; they were planted in large bins against the wall, or growing right out of the floor itself.

The decorator who designed this place belonged in a nuthouse.

"Say, Chaud, this is some place you've got here." Beck noted, although Duo got the impression that she _liked_ the theme. "Original in the extreme. Do your beds look homegrown, too?"

"No," Chaud said calmly. "I didn't let her go quite _that_ far when she redid the place."

"Her? Meaning your incredibly adorable girlfriend that I hear so much about?" Beck asked eagerly. "Me wanna meet!"

"I'm scared to let you." Chaud said, rolling his eyes. "She's a bit timid, and you might scare her off."

"Aw, I promise I'll be uber-extra-better-than-ever good!" Beki promised pleadingly. "I can behave! Ask Trowa!"

"Is she immune to sarcasm?" Chaud asked, turning to Trowa. "Or is she just oblivious?"

"A little from column A, a little from column B." Trowa said, shrugging. "I'm used to it."

"So she and Lien are two of a kind?"

"Not quite. Beck's a bit calmer, much more reliable, and she can bake a cake without burning the house down. She's also not nearly so accident-prone."

"That's a relief." Chaud sighed. "Hey, Beck, you passed it. She's in here." The redhead indicated then opened a nondescript wooden door. "Hey, Chi."

"Chi!" A high soprano exclaimed from somewhere in the room, and a pale blur threw itself around Chaud's neck. "Welcome back!"

"I only went downstairs, Chi." Chaud protested, smiling like a lovestruck fool. "You could have come with me. But, hey, we've got company."

"Company?" Chi repeated. "Chi will greet our guests!"

Chi, much to Beck's delight, was a small, pale thing with big amber eyes and ivory hair that brushed the floor every time she moved. She spoke sometimes in third person, sometimes in first person, and had such an eager, trusting personality that even Duo found himself liking her.

"Welcome, guests, to Chi's home. Chi has juice, if you like."

"I definitely like." Beck said happily. "Let's go get some. And Tasuki, stop glaring at the poor girl; you'll scare her off. C'mon, Lien!" The blond dragged Tasuki, Lien, and Chi off towards the refreshments, chattering like a magpie.

"She's certainly… assertive."

"Assertive is _not_ the word I'd use." Trowa said, smiling. "This is Duo, by the way. He's kind of shy. Duo, this is Chaud, reputed to be the smartest human in the country."

"Hey, I'm not as cool as all that." Chaud protested, laughing. "I just read too much. Nice to meet you, Duo,"

"Same," Duo said with a smile of his own.

"He one, too?" Chaud asked Trowa cryptically, gesturing at Duo.

"Definitely," Trowa answered. "Shinigami,"

"Yikes," Chaud said, staring at Duo for a moment before composing himself. "Sorry, Duo; it's not every day I find myself entertaining demons straight out of legend. Please, if you need anything at all, don't hesitate to ask."

Duo turned to look at Trowa, confused and a bit apprehensive. The way Trowa and Chaud were talking was cryptic enough to qualify as code, and Duo always felt uneasy when people talked around him.

"He doesn't know, does he?" Chaud asked suddenly, and sighed when Trowa nodded. "They were afraid of that. Listen, Duo, you and me and Trowa need to talk. There appear to be some pretty big gaps in what you know about yourself, and I need to fill them in. Is that okay with you?"

* * *

"Okay," Chaud began once Duo and Trowa were comfortably seated in his office, "I have no idea how much you know, so I'm just going to start at the beginning and take it from there." He walked around his desk, an impressive mahogany monster inlaid with abstract silver designs, and sat down himself. "I have to put myself in storyteller mode in order to make sure I don't leave anything out, so bear with me. It's something like a trance, and it's pretty hard to break from the inside. If I start turning blue, green, black, or any other unnatural color, get Chi; she knows what to do."

Duo nodded, as did Trowa, and their host smiled, closing his eyes and taking a deep breath.

"_It was long, long ago when the gods warred upon the Earth, longer than any calendar can record. Great were the battles, and many were the casualties. Each god commanded an army of followers, for Terra's children were many, and willingly gave their small lives to honor those they worshipped._" Chaud's face took on a calm, almost serene look that sent shivers down Duo's spine, and his voice dropped to a harsh, steady tone barely above a loud whisper.

"_Chiefest among the gods in battle was the God of Death, called the Black God, called Reaper, and vast were his lands, bordered North by the sheer face of the Cliff God, bordered East by the Goddesses of Spring, bordered West by the Gods of Pain and Fear, bordered South by the vast home of the Sea Gods. The God of Death sought to keep back the savage hordes of the Gods of Pain and Fear, for these Gods sought the lithe and generous Goddesses of Spring for their slave-wives, and the God of Death was fond of the Goddesses of Spring._

"_In their foolish confidence, the Gods of Pain and Fear declared war upon the God of Death, calling to their aid the Sea Gods of the South and the stooped Gods of Betrayal and Darkness from the far West. The God of Death besought aid from the Cliff God, who also harbored great love for the Goddesses of Spring. The Gods of Vengeance and Anger offered also their people, but their tribes were small, and the God of Death feared to allow any to be lost. In his sad and infinite wisdom, the God of Death sent the tribes of the Gods of Vengeance and Anger to guard most closely the peaceful Goddesses of Spring._

"_Thus were the Heavens and Earth divided, as tribes and gods chose one side or the next, and none remained neutral in this. The Gods of Pain and Fear and the God of Death did battle long upon the field, calling upon their allies and followers to stay the support of the other. The Cliff God moved his cave-dwelling peoples against the wily followers of the Sea Gods, and Water fought Earth. The Gods of Betrayal and Darkness engaged the worshippers of the Sun Gods, and Light battled Dark._

"_Days and weeks and months passed in endless battle, and the gentle Goddesses of Spring wept to see the sorrow their refusal had caused. Escorted by the Gods of Vengeance and Anger, they journeyed to the battlefield in the hopes of ending the bloodshed._

"_When arrived they at the place of war, the Goddesses of Spring wept anew, for their protector and beloved friend, the God of Death, lay wounded under the sword of the God of Pain, and the God of Fear raised his terrible spear to commit the unspeakable- to slay a fellow god._

"_The Goddesses of Spring, their peril and sorrowful mission forgotten, rushed to aid the God of Death. The God of Fear struck one a mighty blow, and the other fell upon her knees beside her sister. The Gods of Vengeance and Anger saw this, and, believing their charges slain, engaged the Gods of Pain and Fear in unthinking fury._

"_The God of Death, his mighty strength diminished but not gone, rose to end the fight, so no god, whatever his crimes, should be slain. The Goddesses of Spring joined him in attempted peace-making, and succeeded in staying the vengeance of all gods present._

"_Quietly, while the gods did negotiate peace, the God of Betrayal stole behind the God of Death and raised his terrible dagger. Swift and sure in his act, the God of Betrayal slew the God of Death in a single stoke._"

Duo couldn't help but gasp, although the soft sound didn't disturb Chaud in the least.

"_Great were the consequences of this act, for as the God of Death fell, he vowed to return in time and exact revenge for his slaying. In great fear, the God of Betrayal sought to escape, but even the Gods of Pain and Fear gave him no quarter, and he was stripped of his godhood and locked away in eternal prison for his crimes. He, too, vowed vengeance, and was sealed._

"_Unbeknownst to the gods, the God of Betrayal had given his followers his True Name, that at some time distant, he might be released to fulfill his promise of revenge, and his True Name was Gar._

"_The God of Death had also given his priests his True Name, but those who knew it had been slain in battle. In their grief, the Goddesses of Spring climbed atop the Cliff God's home and proclaimed to the stars and sky that the God of Death was Shinigami._"

Duo started violently, and Trowa put a comforting arm around his shoulders, motioning for him to wait until Chaud finished.

"_The Gods of the Stars and the Goddess of Night vowed to hold and keep the God of Death's True Name, and impart it to him when once again his great and ancient soul was born on Earth, and the Goddesses of Spring did retire to mourn the slaying of a God._"

Chaud came back to himself with a snap, and Duo turned to glare accusingly at Trowa.

"You knew, didn't you?" Duo demanded almost angrily.

"I _guessed_," Trowa corrected softly. "I couldn't be sure until I brought you here. A lot of demon mothers name their children Shinigami, but a false Shinigami wouldn't have fooled Chaud for a second."

"Although I don't have Trowa's insanely optimistic faith in my abilities, I have to agree." Chaud spoke up. "No one can lie to me for very long, and wearing Shinigami's name without possessing his soul is something of a lie. That was only the relevant passage; the story goes on for a bit, telling about how the gods picked up the pieces and rebuilt Earth, then retired to Heaven, and about the writing of the prophecy, but it's long and tedious, and you don't need to hear it just yet."

"There's more, too," Trowa added a bit hesitantly. "Since you are, indeed, the reincarnation of the God of Death, then you're also the Shining One of the prophecy." He paused and looked down at Duo, his green eyes sympathetic and slightly apologetic. "I hate to have to dump this all on you at once, but I don't know how much time we have left, and I can't risk waiting until it's too late. Forgive me?"

"I…" Duo shrugged helplessly and rested his head on Trowa's shoulder. "Of course I forgive you, but… I hate to sound whiny, but why me?"

"Because the gods fucked up, I bet." Chaud snorted. "When Shinigami came back, it was supposed to be with all his memories and powers, and the event was supposed to be noted and acted on by the gods. But a few of them wanted safeguards in place, so they tagged Shinigami's soul and bound it, so it would take a trigger to unlock his memories and such when he was ready. I'm guessing they gave that trigger to your parents, but for some reason, they never set it off on you. Can you figure why?"

"B-because my… my mother's d-dead." Duo said, his stutter resurfacing. "Sh-she d-died when I was young. Around three. A-and my f-father left b-before I was born."

"Shit," Chaud muttered. "Me and my big fucking mouth. I'm sorry, Shinigami; didn't mean to call up bad memories."

"I-it's okay," Duo managed. "But please, d-don't call me Shinig-gami. I p-prefer Duo."

"All right, Duo. I'm still sorry."

"I say we go rejoin the others before Beck comes looking for us." Trowa spoke up before the situation could become even more awkward. "She can get into a lot of mischief if left on her own."

"You're probably right, and I don't think I want to replace any more furniture." Chaud sighed, standing up and stretching. "Let's go, before those two imps burn my house down around me, and the forest with it."

* * *

_I'm so sorry, mysterychild-001, and anyone else that's still reading this! I promise I'll try really, really hard to get the next chapter out sooner!_

_Please review and say you forgive me!_


End file.
